W.  C.  dc  K.  S.  Steef? 


LIBRARY  OF  THE  THEOLOGICAL  SEMINARY 

PRINCETON,    N.    J. 


Purchased  by  the 
Mrs.  Robert  Lenox  Kennedy  Church   History  Fund. 


BX  8947  .N8  C72  1907 
Craig,  D.  I.  1849-1925. 
A  history  of  the  development 
of  the  Presbyterian  Church 


"41      >  *»  i»* 


DEVELOPMENT    OF  THE    PRESBY- 
TERIAN CHURCH  IN  NORTH 
CAROLINA. 


\\V^'  '  •  *      .  -I,- 


(       JUN  16  i^ 

A  HISTORY  ^^-J!!:;:^-. 


Development  of  the  Presbyterian 
Church  in  North  Carolina j 

AND  OF 

Synodical  Home  Missions^ 


TOGETHER  WITH 


EVANGELISTIC  ADDRESSES  BY  JAMES  I.  VANCE,  D.  D., 

AND  OTHERS 


BY 

Rev.  D.  I.  CRAIG. 


RICHMOND,  VA.: 
Whittet  &  Shkpperson,  Printers. 


Copyright 

BY 

Rev.  William  Black 
1907. 


INTRODUCTION. 

By  Rev.  H.  G.  Hill,  D.  D. 

It  is  well  to  write  the  history  of  Synodical  Home  ]\Iis- 
sion  work  in  North  Carolina  at  the  present  time.  Nearly 
a  score  of  years  have  passed  since  it  was  inaugurated.  It 
met  with  considerable  opposition,  on  the  part  of  con- 
scientious brethren,  who  doubted  the  constitutional  right 
of  Synod  to  engage  in  this  work.  The  plans  and  methods 
of  conducting  it  were  altered  and  amended,  as  experi- 
ence and  wisdom  demanded.  The  present  scheme  of 
conducting  it,  by  a  synodical  committee,  consisting  of 
one  minister  and  one  elder  from  each  Presbytery,  with 
an  executive  committee  of  five  members  of  the  whole 
committee,  aided  by  a  superintendent  and  a  general  evan- 
gelist, is  the  result  of  long  experience  and  varied  experi- 
ment. The  w^isdom  of  this  plan  has  been  manifested  by 
the  success  attained,  and  by  the  fact  that  substantially  the 
same  plan  has  been  adopted  by  other  Synods.  The  re- 
sults achieved  by  Synodical  Home  Alission  work,  both 
direct  and  indirect,  have  been  m^ost  gratifying  and  in- 
spiring. The  efforts  of  the  Synod  have  lifted  our  people 
to  a  higher  plane  of  giving,  and  have  stimulated  the  Pres- 
byteries to  more  vigorous  endeavors  at  evangelization 
within  their  own  bounds.  In  less  than  a  score  of  years, 
churches  of  our  faith  have  been  planted  in  all  the  counties 
of  the  State  except  twelve  or  thirteen ;  the  number  of  the 
Presbyteries  has  risen  from  four  to  eight ;  and  the  roll  of 
communicants  has  increased  from  25,000  to  more  than  40,- 
000.  Surely,  results  like  these  have  more  than  justified 
all   the   thought,   money   and   labor   that   have   been   ex- 


6  Introduction. 

pended  upon  Synodical  Home  Missions  in  North  Caro- 
lina. But  many  of  the  actors  in  these  stirring  scenes  have 
passed  away  and  others  are  nearing  the  close  of  their 
earthly  career.  It  is  wise,  therefore,  to  gather  up  the 
facts  connected  with  Home  Mission  work  in  this  State 
while  some  survive  who  are  familiar  with  them,  and  be- 
fore they  pass  from  the  memory  of  the  living.  The 
story  of  Presbyterian  Gospel  progress  in  North  Carolina 
will  be  profoundly  interesting  to  future  church  historians, 
and  will  edify  and  stimulate  generations  yet  to  come.  The 
author  of  this  history  of  Synodical  Home  Missions  in 
North  Carolina,  Rev.  D.  I.  Craig,  of  Reidsville.  N.  C, 
deserves  the  approbation  of  his  cotemporaries  and  will, 
be  entitled  to  the  gratitude  of  posterity  for  his  laborious 
and  successful  eflforts  to  preserve  for  the  church  and  the 
world  the  interesting  facts  recorded.  Having  been  stated 
clerk  of  the  Synod  of  North  Carolina  for  many  years, 
having  personal  knowledge  of  many  of  the  events  men- 
tioned, having  ready  access  to  the  documents  furnishing 
information,  and  having  corresponded  wath  many  of  the 
most  active  promoters  of  mission  work  in  this  and  other 
States,  the  author  is  eminently  qualified  to  become  the 
historian  of  this  synodical  movement.  To  those  who 
know  him,  it  is  needless  to  say  that  he  has  been  very 
diligent  in  collecting  the  material,  and  used  the  greatest 
care  to  render  his  statements  truthful,  accurate  and  profit- 
able to  his  readers.  It  enhances  the  value  of  the  work  he 
has  done  for  the  church  to  know  that  he  has  prosecuted 
it  with  comparatively  little  help  or  encouragement,  and 
without  hope  of  pecuniary  reward  for  his  toil.  But  useful 
labor  is  largely  its  own  reward,  and  it  is  hoped  that  this 
publication  will  receive  from  the  Presbyterians  of  this 
Synod  a  most  hearty  welcome,  and  find  a  place  in  every 
home  within  our  bounds. 


CONTENTS. 

Introduction,  By  H.  G.  Hill,  D.  D., 5 

CHAPTER  I. 
A  Brief  Retrospect  of  the  Presbyterian  Church 

IN  North  Carolina  Prior  to  1812,  9 

CHAPTER  H. 
The  Synod  of  North  Carolina  from  the  Time 

OF  ITS  Formation  Until  the  Civil  War^  ....     20 

CHAPTER  HI. 
The    Synod   of    North    Carolina    During   the 

Civil  War  and  its  Reconstruction  Period,     30 

CHAPTER  IV. 
The   Origin    of   Synodical   Home   Missions    in 

North  Carolina,  40 

CHAPTER  V. 

The  Inauguration  of  Synodical  Home  Missions 

IN  North  Carolina  and  Men  of  the  Times,     55 

CHAPTER  VI. 
The  Progress  of  Synodical  Home  Missions  in 

North  Carolina,  and  the  Men  of  the  Times,     70 


8  Contents. 

CHAPTER  VII. 
The  Continued  Progress^  and  Some  of  the  Re- 
sults OF  Synodical  Home  Missions  in  North 
Carolina^  and  the  Men  of  the  Times, 88 

CHAPTER  VIII. 
A  Brief  Summary  of  Some  of  the  Results  of 
Synodical  Home  Missions  in  North  Caro- 
lina     Ill 


Evangelistic  and  Missionary  Addresses  : 

Foreword,     127 

"If  My  Country  were  Heathen,"  Rev.  James 

I.  Vance,  D.  D.,  129 

"The  Evangelistic  Pastor/'  Rev.  J.  Wilbur 

Chapman,  D.  D.,   141 

''Home  Missions  the  Supreme  Need  of  the 
Hour,"  Rev.  S.  L.  Morris,  D.  D., 171 

"Mission  Work,"  Rev.  Wm.  Black, 182 


The  Presbyterian  Church  in 
North  Carolina. 


CHAPTER  I. 


A  Brief  Retrospect  of  the  Presbyterian  Church  in 
North  Carolina  Prior  to  1812. 

In  order  to  get  a  clear  conception  of  the  development 
of  the  Presbyterian  Church  in  North  CaroHna,  it  seems 
necessary  to  take  into  consideration  some  of  the  facts 
and  conditions  of  the  church  from  an  early  period  in 
her  history  down  to  the  time  of  the  fonnation  of  the 
Synod  of  North  Carolina,  Consequently  the  first  chap- 
ter of  this  book  is  devoted  chiefly  to  a  brief  statement  of 
some  of  these  facts  and  conditions,  touching  ihe  progress 
of  the  church,  and  also  the  dates  showing  the  time  of  the 
formation  of  her  courts. 

The  Presbytery  of  Hanover  was  formed  by  the  Synod 
of  New  York  in  the  year  1755,  and  its  territory  embraced 
indefinitely  the  whole  southern  country,  and,  of  couise, 
included  North  Carolina.  The  first  Presbyterian  church 
court  (higher  than  a  church  session)  ever  held  in  North 
Carolina,  so  far  as  I  have  been  able  to  ascertain,  was 
that  of  Hanover  Presbytery,  which  convened  at  "  Lower 
Hico"  Church,  in  Person  county,  afterwards  called  ''Bar- 
netts,"  on  October  2,  1765.  This  meeting  was  held  for 
the  purpose  of  ordaining  and  installing  the  Rev.  James 


lo  The  Presbyterian  Church 

Cressvvell  as  pastor  of  this  church,  together  with  Grassy 
Creek  and  Nutbush  churches,  in  Granville  county.  At 
this  meeting,  also,  the  Rev.  Henry  Pattillo  was  called  to 
the  Churches  of  Hawfields  and  Little  River,  in  Orange 
county. 

The  second  meeting  of  Hanover  Presbytery  held  in 
North  Carolina  was  at  "  Middle  Hico,"  nov/  known  as 
"Red  House  Church,"  in  Caswell  county,  on  June  4,  1766. 

The  third  meeting  of  this  Presbytery  held  in  North 
Carolina  was  at  Buffalo  Church,  in  Guilford  county, 
then  Rowan  county,  on  March  2,  1768.  At  this  meeting 
the  Rev.  Dr.  David  Caldwell  was  installed  pastor,  though 
he  had  been  serving  this  church  for  several  years ;  the 
Rev.  Joseph  Alexander  was  ordained  '*sine-titulo,"  and 
the  Rev.  Hugh  McAden  was  called  from  Duplin  county 
to  the  churches  on  the  ''Hico."  Mr.  McAden  had  been 
a  resident  minister  in  Duplin  county  since  1757,  and  Mr. 
Alexander  was  the  successor  of  the  Rev.  Alexander 
Craighead,  who  was  called  to  Rocky  River  in  1758,  and 
who  died  at  Sugar  Creek  Church,  in  Mecklenburg 
county,  in  1766.  There  is  no  record,  so  far  as  I  know, 
of  the  installation  by  Hanover  Presbytery  of  Mr. 
McAden  at  "Goshen"  Church,  in  Duplin  county,  or  of 
Mr.  Craighead  at  Rocky  River  Church,  in  Cabarrus 
county.  But  in  those  days  the  synod  often  acted  in  a 
Presbyterial  capacity  when  it  was  necessary;  for  we  find 
that  in  1765  a  call  from  the  "Catry's  Settlement,"  in 
North  Carolina  (Thyatira  Church)  was  presented  to  the 
Synod  of  New  York  and  Philadelphia  for  the  Rev.  Elihu 
Spencer,  and  placed  in  his  hands ;  and  at  the  same  time 
a  call  was  presented  from  the  Hopewell  and  Centre 
churches  for  the  Rev.  Mr.  McWhorter,  which  was  not 
placed  in  his  hands.  It  would  seem  from  this  that  Han- 
over Presbytery   was   not   regarded  by   these   congrega- 


In  North  Carolina.  ii 

tions,  and  it  is  possible  that  Messrs.  McAden  and  Craig- 
head were  installed  by  a  commission  from  the  synod. 

The  fourth  and  last  meeting  of  Hanover  Presbytery 
held  in  North  Carolina  was  at  Buffalo  Church,  in  Guil- 
ford county,  March  7,  1770.  At  this  meeting  an  over- 
ture to  the  Synod  of  New  York  and  Philadelphia  was 
adopted  for  the  erection  of  Orange  Presbytery,  and  in 
May  following  the  overture  was  granted,  and  on  the  5th 
day  of  September,  1770,  at  the  Hawfields  Church,  in 
Orange  county,  the  Presbytery  of  Orange  was  organized. 

Prior  to  1765  very  few  regular  Presbyterian  ministers 
had  resided  or  were  then  living  in  North  Carolina.  These 
were  the  Rev.  Messrs.  Hugh  McAden,  James  Campbell, 
Alexander  Craighead,  James  Cresswell,  Henry  Pattillo, 
David  Caldwell,  and  James  Tate,  who  was  never  con- 
nected with  Orange  Presbytery,  but  lived  in  Wilmington : 
It  is  also  possible  that  the  Rev.  William  Tennent  lived 
in  Granville  county  for  a  short  time  about  1743,  and  that 
the  Rev.  Samuel  Black  lived  in  Duplin  or  New  Hanover 
county  a  short  time  about  1744.  There  were  a  number 
of  missionaries  sent  through  the  State  before  this  time, 
and  the  first  missionary,  and  indeed  the  first  Presbyterian 
minister^  known  to  have  preached  in  North  Carolina  was 
the  Rev.  William  Robinson,  about  1742. 

Of  the  above  named  ministers,  McAden,  Cresswell, 
Pattillo  and  Caldwell,  together  with  Joseph  x\lexander, 
Hezekiah  Balch  and  Hezekiah  James  Balch,  composed 
the  original  Presbytery  of  Orange  in  1770. 

In  1765  many  boundaries  were  fixed,  and  many 
churches  throughout  the  State  were  organized  and  re- 
organized by  the  Rev.  Messrs.  Spencer  and  McWhorter, 
who  were  commissioned  by  the  synod  to  do  this  work, 
and  in  1770  there  were  about  forty  or  fifty  churches  in 
the  State,  with  a  membership  of  about  2,000. 


12  The  Presbyterian  Church 

The  territory  of  Orange  Presbytery  at  this  time  ex- 
tended indefinitely  to  the  south  and  west  from  the  Vir- 
ginia boundary,  but  practically  only  the  State  of  North 
Carolina  east  of  the  Blue  Ridge,  and  the  upper  part  of 
South  Carolina,  were  occupied  by  its  ministers. 

It  is  a  matter  of  deep,  though  vain,  regret  that  the 
records  of  Orange  Presbytery,  embracing  the  first 
twenty-five  years  of  its  history  (1770-1795,  and  also  from 
1 8 12  to  1827)  are  lost  beyond  recovery.  They  were 
burned  with  the  residence  of  Rev.  Dr.  John  Witherspoon, 
near  Hillsboro,  N.  C,  on  January  i,  1827. 

From  1770  to  1784  embraced  the  period  in  which  oc- 
curred the  Revolutionary  War,  the  Declaration  of  Inde- 
pendence at  Charlotte  and  at  Philadelphia,  and  American 
freedom,  with  all  the  stirring  scenes,  events  and  hardships 
incident  thereto ;  and  yet  during  that  period  the  Presbyte- 
rian Church  seems  to  have  strengthened  and  grown  more 
rapidly  than  for  a  number  of  years  afterwards.  Fourteen 
ministers  were  added  to  the  roll,  and  quite  a  number  of 
churches  were  organized  during  that  period.  The  names 
of  the  ministers  were:  John  Harris,  James  Campbell 
(who  belonged  to  the  old  South  Carolina  Presbytery), 
James  Edmonds,  Thomas  Reece,  John  Simpson,  Alex. 
McMillan,  Samuel  E.  McCorkle,  Thomas  H.  McCaul, 
John  Debow,  Thomas  Hill,  Andrew  Patton,  James  Hall, 
Robert  Archibald  and  John  Cossan.  The  Rev.  Dr. 
McCorkle  became  a  member  of  the  Presbytery  in  1777, 
and  the  Rev.  Dr.  Hall  in  1778,  and  these  two  men  were 
the  peers  in  the  western  section  of  the  Presbytery ;  of 
Henry  Pattillo  and  David  Caldwell  in  the  middle  or 
eastern  section,  and  all  four  of  them  were  profound 
scholars,  able  statesmen  and  staunch  patriots,  and  they 
wielded  a  tremendous  influence  in  their  day  for  civil 
liberty  and   Presbyterianism    in    North    Carolina.     The 


In  North  Carolina.  13 

names  of  these  four  men,  together  with  Craighead, 
McAden,  Campbell,  Alexander  and  H.  J.  Balch,  and 
others  mentioned  above,  will  never  be  forgotten  in  con- 
nection with  the  great  struggle  for  American  Independ- 
ence and  the  advancement  of  the  Presbyterian  Church. 

In  1784  there  was  a  general  adjustment  of  the  bound- 
aries of  the  Presbyteries  throughout  the  United  States, 
and  during  that  year  the  Presbytery  of  South  Carolina 
was  set  off  from  Orange  by  the  Synod  of  New  York  and 
Philadelphia.  The  first  meeting  was  held  at  Waxhaws 
in  April,  1785,  with  the  following  members :  Rev.  Messrs. 
Alexander,  Edmonds,  Reece,  Harris,  Simpson  and  Fran- 
cis Cummins.  The  State  line  between  North  and  South 
Carolina  now  became,  to  a  considerable  extent,  the  south- 
ern boundary  of  Orange  Presbytery. 

In  1788  the  Synod  of  New  York  and  Philadelphia  was 
dissolved,  and  the  General  Assembly  of  the  Presbyterian 
Church  in  the  United  States  of  America  was  formed,  and 
as  a  part  of  the  formation  the  Synod  of  the  Carolinas  was 
erected. 

The  Synod  of  the  Carolinas  existed  until  181 3,  and 
was  composed  of  the  Presbyteries  of  Orange,  South 
Carolina,  and  Abingdon,  the  territory  of  the  latter  being 
chiefly  in  Tennessee.  The  first  meeting  of  the  synod  was 
held  at  Centre  Church,  in  Rowan  county.  North  Carolina, 
on  November  5,  1788.  The  Rev.  David  Caldwell  preached 
the  opening  sermon,  and  was  Moderator  of  the  meeting. 
Only  ten  ministers  and  eight  ruling  elders  were  present, 
though  the  roll  of  the  three  Presbyteries  at  this  time 
showed  the  names  of  twenty-eight  ministers. 

During  the  existence  of  this  synod  considerable  efforts 
were  made  to  extend  the  Gospel  into  the  destitute  regions 
of  the  State,  and  even  beyond  the  State  into  Tennessee  and 
Mississippi.     The  great  cause  of  domestic  missions  was 


14  The  Presbyterian  Church 

freely  discussed  in  what  was  then  called  "  The  Free  Con- 
versation," and  various  members  of  the  Synod  were 
appointed  from  time  to  time  as  missionaries,  and  these 
brethren  would  often  spend  weeks,  and  sometimes  as  long 
as  six  months,  in  their  journeys  travelling  over  the  coun- 
try and  preaching  the  Gospel  wherever  they  could  com- 
mand an  audience.  The  Rev.  James  Hall,  D.  D.,  did  a 
great  deal  of  this  kind  of  work  in  his  day,  and  his  reports 
to  the  synod,  which,  with  others,  are  still  on  record,  are 
elaborate  and  intensely  interesting. 

In  1795  the  Presbytery  of  Concord  was  set  off  from 
Orange  by  the  Synod  of  the  Carolinas,  with  the  follow- 
ing twelve  ministers:  Rev.  Messrs.  Samuel  McCorkle, 
James  Hall,  James  McRee,  David  Barr,  Samuel  C.  Cald- 
well, James  WalHs,  J.  D.  Kilpatrick,  L.  F.  Wilson,  John 
Carrigan,  Humphrey  Hunter,  J.  M.  Wilson  and  Alexan- 
der Caldw-ell.  The  Yadkin  river  was  made  the  line  of 
division,  cutting  the  State  into  two  parts.  Concord  em- 
bracing the  territory  west  and  Orange  east  of  this  line. 
The  first  meeting  of  Concord  Presbytery  was  held  at 
Bethphage  Church  December  24,  1795. 

In  1799  the  first  recorded  statistics  are  given,  and 
these  show  that  the  two  Presbyteries  of  Orange  and  Con- 
cord had  a  membership  at  that  time  of  twenty-nine  min- 
isters and  fifty-five  churches,  but  the  number  of  com- 
municants is  not  given. 

In  1800,  and  for  several  years  afterwards,  the  church 
witnessed  and  enjoyed  one  of  the  most  remarkable  and 
wonderful  revivals  of  religion  that  this  country  has  per- 
haps ever  seen.  It  began  in  1800,  and  lasted  for  several 
years,  and  it  was  remarkable  in  its  extent,  covering  sev- 
eral States,  and  in  the  strange  affections  of  mind  and 
body  which  possessed  the  people  without  warning,  and 
regardless  of  time  or  place.     It  seems  to  have  had  its 


In  North  Carolina.  15 

origin  under  the  preaching  of  the  Rev.  James  McGready, 
who  was  indeed  a  very  remarkable  man,  and  whose  first 
charge  was  at  the  Haw  River,  Speedwell  and  Stony 
Creek  churches  in  Orange  Presbytery  in  the  years 
i793-'5-  He  removed  to  Kentucky,  where  the  great 
revival  began,  and  it  gradually  spread  over  a  great  por- 
tion of  the  whole  southern  country,  and  especially  in 
North  Carolina  in  the  year  1802.  Great  numbers  pro- 
fessed conversion  and  united  with  the  church,  and  a 
lasting  work  for  the  Master  seems  to  have  been  accom- 
plished. 

A  particular  account  of  the  life  and  character  of  Mr. 
McGready  and  of  this  strange  and  wonderful  work  of 
grace  may  be  seen  in  Dr.  Foote's  ''Sketches  of  North 
Carolina." 

In  1812,  among  the  last  acts  enacted  by  the  Synod  of 
the  Carolinas  was  to  set  off  from  Orange  the  Presby- 
tery of  Fayetteville,  with  the  following  eight  members: 
Rev.  Messrs.  Samuel  Stanford,  William  L.  Turner,  Mal- 
colm McNair,  Murdock  McMillan,  John  Mclntyre,  Wil- 
liam B.  Meroney,  Allen  McDougald  and  William  Pea- 
cock. 

This  Presbytery  did  not  meet  and  organize  at  the  time 
appointed,  but  held  its  first  meeting  at  Centre  Church,  in 
Robeson  county,  October  21,  1813. 

The  Synod  of  the  Carolinas  then  adopted,  as  its  closing 
act,  an  overture  to  the  General  Assembly  for  the  division 
of  itself  into  two  synods,  to  be  known  as  the  "  Synod  of 
North  Carolina,"  comprising  the  Presbyteries  of  Orange, 
Concord  and  Fayetteville;  and  the  ''Synod  of  South 
Carolina  and  Georgia,"  comprising  the  Presbyteries  of 
South  Carolina,  Hopewell  and  Harmony,  and  that  the 
Synod  of  the  Carolinas  be  dissolved. 

The  Synod  of  the  Carolinas  then  adjourned  sine  die  at 
New  Providence  Church,  October  5,  1812. 


i6  The  Presbyterian  Church 

During  the  existence  of  thi»  synod  a  very  great  deal 
was  accomplished  along  many  lines,  looking  to  the  ad- 
vancement of  Christ's  kingdom  and  the  development  of 
the  Presbyterian  Church.  New  Presbyteries  were  formed, 
boundaries  were  fixed,  and  a  vast  amount  of  missionary 
work  was  done.  We  must  remember — and  we  too  often 
forget — that  in  those  days  the  educational,  religious  and 
missionary  advantages  were  not  what  they  are  now,  and 
that  the  chief  mode  of  travel  was  on  horseback,  and  that 
many  of  the  ministers,  pastors  as  well  as  missionaries, 
spent  a  large  portion  of  their  time  in  the  saddle.  The 
territory  was  almost  unlimited,  and  many  of  the  congre- 
gations were  scattered  and  far  apart,  and,  besides  the 
daily  travel  and  constant  hardships,  the  occasional  trips 
to  the  synod  or  to  the  General  Assembly,  the  latter  usually 
meeting  in  Philadelphia,  were  long  and  v^earisome  jour- 
neys. There  were  many  difficulties  to  be  met  and  obsta- 
cles to  be  overcome ;  there  were  no  settled  plans  for  syste- 
matic giving,  for  the  extension  and  support  of  the 
Gospel,  and  the  compensation  of  ministers  was  exceed- 
ingly small,  but  these  men  faithfully  did  their  work  and 
preached  the  Gospel  in  all  its  simplicity  and  purity,  and 
left  the  results  with  God. 

In  those  days  the  church  was  very  jealous  of  the  doc- 
trines held  and  preached  by  her  ministers,  and  of  the 
pure  life  and  character  required  of  them.  Consequently 
there  were  many  cases  of  investigation  and  discipline  in 
the  synod  and  in  the  Presbyteries.  Some  of  these  cases 
w^ere  of  long  duration,  and  occupied  much  of  the  time  of 
the  church  courts.  Such  were  the  cases  of  the  complaint 
of  the  Rev.  Hezekiah  Balch  against  the  Abingdon  Pres- 
bytery, and  the  counter  complaints  of  the  Presbyterv 
against  him,  and  of  the  Rev.  Colin  Lindsay  in  Orange 
Presbvterv. 


In  North  Carolina.  17 

The  history  of  Mr.  Lindsay  in  the  church  courts  is  a 
very  remarkable  one,  and  he  had  a  very  remarkable 
career.  He  was  born  in  Scotland,  and  it  is  said  of  him, 
that  he  was  a  very  scholarly  man,  of  fine  personal  appear- 
ance, a  good  preacher,  and  that  he  commanded  a  great 
influence  over  his  friends  and  adherents.  He  came  from 
Scotland  to  North  Carolina  and  united  with  Orange  Pres- 
bytery in  the  year  1792,  and  from  this  time  until  1803, 
when  his  ministerial  career  came  to  a  close,  he  was 
almost  continuously  before  the  church  courts,  having 
been  often  admonished,  several  times  suspended,  and 
finally  deposed  from  the  ministry.  During  this  period  he 
served,  at  different  times,  the  churches  of  Black  River, 
Brown  Marsh,  Lumberton,  Raft's  Swamp,  Shoe  Heel 
(which  is  now  Maxton),  Gum  Swamp  and  Bethel. 

A  most  wonderful  story  has  been  told  in  connection 
with  this  man's  birth,  and  while  there  have  been  many 
variations  of  the  story  and  of  its  explanation,  yet  the 
main  facts  have  been  abundantly  corroborated,  and  many 
of  the  people  of  Robeson  county  accept  it  as  absolutely 
true.  The  story,  in  short,  is  this:  The  Rev.  Colin  Lind- 
say was  born  after  his  mother  had  died  and  had  been 
buried !     The  explanation  is  as  follows : 

Mrs.  Lindsay  was  a  lady  of  culture,  refinement  and 
considerable  wealth,  and  in  the  natural  course  of  events 
she  was  taken  sick,  and  to  all  appearances  she  died.  The 
family  believing  her  to  be  dead,  the  necessary  prepara- 
tions for  burial  were  made,  and  in  preparing  the  body  for 
the  tomb  it  was  customary  in  Scotland  to  leave  upon  the 
person  the  individual  jewelry,  just  as  they  had  worn  it 
while  living,  and,  thus  prepared,  the  body  of  Mrs.  Lind- 
say was  laid  in  the  tomb  and  buried.  On  the  night  fol- 
lowing the  burial  a  band  of  robbers,  desirous  of  obtaining 
the  jewelry,  repaired  to  the  grave  and  opened  it.     They 


i8  The  Presbyterian  Church 

removed  the  lid  from  the  coffin  and  proceeded  to  remove 
a  ring  from  a  finger,  and  in  doing  this  it  was  necessary 
to  cut  the  finger,  which  drew  blood,  and  immediately  the 
dormant  circulation  in  the  body  was  restored  and.  signs 
of  life  were  apparent.  The  robbers  fled  from  the  scene 
in  terror,  and  in  their  flight  they  were  observed  by  some 
persons  passing  by  who  immediately  repaired  to  the 
grave  and  found  Mrs.  Lindsay  struggling  and  crying  for 
help!  They  quickly  removed  her  from  the  open  grave 
and  tenderly  bore  her  to  her  home,  which  was  hardby, 
and  delivered  her  to  her  amazed  and  dumbfounded 
family!  In  a  short  time,  it  is  said  that  Mrs.  Lindsay 
recovered  from  the  shock,  and  soon  after  this  occurrence 
the  Rev.  Colin  Lindsay  was  born ! 

In  those  days  the  church  by  no  means  neglected  the 
great  cause  of  education.  The  doctrine  was  held  by  our 
fathers  that  wherever  a  Presbyterian  settlement  existed 
and  a  pastor  was  located,  there  next  to  the  church  should 
be  a  school,  and  there  were  quite  a  number  of  excellent 
schools  scattered  throughout  the  State.  The  oldest  of 
them  was  perhaps  "Queen's  Museum,"  afterwards  called 
"Liberty  Hall,"  in  Charlotte,  the  charter  of  which  was 
twice  annulled  by  the  King,  and  in  which  many  stirring 
debates  were  held  touching  the  great  questions  of  the 
times,  and  doubtless  among  them  the  immortal  Declara- 
tion of  Independence.  There  was  also  the  old  "Grove 
Academy,"  in  Duplin  county,  by  the  side  of  "Goshen" 
Church,  which  was  perhaps  the  oldest  Presbyterian 
church  in  the  State.  Here  the  Rev.  Hugh  McAden,  the 
Rev.  James  Tate,  and  perhaps  others  preached  and  taught 
in  the  olden  times.  Then  there  were  the  famous  schools 
of  Caldwell  in  Guilford,  of  McCorkle  in  Rowan,  of  Hall 
in  Iredell,  of  Wilson  in  Cabarrus,  and  others  which  were 
not  a  whit  inferior  in  many  respects  to  many  seats  of 


In  North  Carolina.  19 

learning  much  more  pretentious  in  the  present  time. 
These  classic  schools  educated  many  eminent  men,  and 
sent  forth  in  their  day  many  scholars  of  a  high  order. 
The  University  of  North  Carolina  was  founded  in  1793 
under  Presbyterian  influences,  and  the  majority  of  its 
principal  teachers  in  early  times  were  Presbyterians.  It 
was  demanded  by  our  forefathers  that  all  Presbyterian 
children  should  at  least  be  taught  to  read,  and  we  are 
told  "not  to  be  able  to  repeat  the  Shorter  Catechism  was 
a  mark  of  vulgarity  among  the  people  who  claimed  a 
natural  equality."  It  has  also  been  said  that  "from  the 
great  efforts  made  by  Presbyterian  pastors  and  mission- 
aries in  establishing  and  promoting  education  among  the 
people  at  large,  and  from  the  deep  conviction  of  the  im- 
portance of  some  degree  of  education  impressed  upon  the 
hearts  of  Presbyterian  families,  it  came  to  be  a  fact  that 
in  the  bounds  of  the  original  Presbyterian  settlements  in 
North  Carolina,  very  few  persons  grew  up  unable  to 
read  intelligibly.''  It  is  doubtful  if  the  succeeding  gene- 
rations down  to  the  present  time,  can  produce  the  same 
evidences  of  careful  teaching  and  training  on  the  subjects 
of  religion  and  education,  notwithstanding  the  vastly 
increased  facilities  and  advantages,  that  were  apparent  in 
Presbyterian  Homes  before  and  during  the  existence  of 
the  Synod  of  the  Carolinas. 


CHAPTER    11. 

The  Synod  of  North  Carolina  from  the  Time  of  Its 
Formation  Until  the  Civil  War. 

The  first  meeting  of  the  Synod  of  North  Carolina  was 
held  at  Alamance  Church,  in  Guilford  county,  on  Thurs- 
day, Ocotber  7,  18 13.  The  following  twelve  ministers 
and  three  ruling  elders  were  present :  Rev.  Messrs.  David 
Caldwell,  Robert  H.  Chapman,  James  W.  Thompson, 
William  Paisley,  Samuel  Paisley,  Robert  Tate,  Mur- 
dock  McMillan,  John  Mclntyre,  James  Hall,  Samuel  C. 
Caldwell,  John  M.  Wilson,  John  Robinson,  and  Elders 
Hugh  Forbes,  John  McDonald  and  William  Carrigan. 

The  Rev.  Dr.  James  Hall  preached  the  opening  sermon 
on  the  text :  "  Go  ye  into  all  the  world  and  preach  the 
Gospel  to  every  creature."  The  Rev.  Dr.  Robert  H. 
Chapman  was  elected  Moderator,  and  also  elected  the 
stated  clerk  of  the  synod. 

The  synod  was  now  fully  organized,  composed  of  the 
three  Presbyteries  of  Orange,  Concord  and  Fayetteville, 
and  its  territory  embraced  all  of  North  Carolina  and 
small  portions  of  South  Carolina  and  Virginia. 

The  Presbytery  of  Concord  was  now  the  largest  in 
membership,  while  the  Presbytery  of  Orange  was  the 
largest  in  territory,  stretching  from  the  Yadkin  river  to 
the  Atlantic  Ocean.  The  three  Presbyteries  in  whole 
consisted  at  this  time  of  31  ministers,  85  churches  and 
about  4.000  communicants. 

For  a  long  time  after  the  organization  of  the  synod 
the  Presbyterian  Church  in  North  Carolina  seems  to  have 


In  North  Carolina.  21 

been,  in  a  large  measure,  "at  ease  in  Zion,"  and  yet  some 
noble  advances  were  made.  From  18 12  to  1861  embraced 
a  period  of  national  peace  and  great  material  prosperity, 
and  the  institution  of  slavery  was  at  its  flood-tide.  The 
institution  of  slavery  was  not  near  so  profitable  in  North 
Carolina  as  it  was  in  some  other  States,  and  the  mere  fact 
that  a  man  owned  slaves  by  no  means  rendered  it  unne- 
cessary for  him  to  labor  with  his  own  hands,  for  indeed 
the  master,  in  many  respects,  was  often  a  harder  toiler 
than  any  of  his  slaves;  and  yet  slavery  of  itself  was 
doubtless  the  occasion  of  much  indolence  among  the 
people,  and  tended  to  foster  a  spirit  of  indifference  to 
personal  energy,  and  to  high  mental  and  moral  attain- 
ments among  the  masses  of  the  people.  It  is  true  that  the 
church  grew  in  those  days,  but  it  was  more  from  the 
force  of  circumstances  than  from  the  energetic  and  syste- 
matic use  of  the  abundant  means  at  hand.  There  were 
many  gracious  revivals  of  religion  throughout  the  coun- 
try, and  a  great  deal  of  attention  was  given  in  Christian 
homes  to  the  religious  training  of  the  negroes,  but  there 
seems  not  to  have  been  any  general  religious  awakening 
from  the  time  of  the  great  revival  in  i8oo-'3,  until  twenty 
or  thirty  years  afterwards.  New  Presbyteries  were 
formed,  only  soon  afterwards  to  be  dissolved. 

In  1824  the  synod  set  off  from  Concord  the  Presbytery 
of  Bethel,  lying  chiefly  in  York  and  Chester  counties, 
South  Carolina ;  and  at  the  same  time  the  Presbytery  of 
Mecklenburg  was  first  formed,  which  was  also  dissolved 
in  1827.  The  Presbyteries  of  Roanoke  and  Morganton 
were  formed  in  1835,  embracing  practically  the  same  ter- 
ritory now  occupied  by  Albemarle  and  Asheville  pres- 
byteries, and  they  were  dissolved  in  1840. 

Many  noble  opportunities  for  the  expansion,  develop- 
ment and  growth  of  the  Presbyterian  Church  were  neg- 


22  The  PRRsr.YTERTAX  Church 

lected  and  lost,  and  other  denominations  came  in  and 
possessed  much  cf  the  land  which  naturally  and  rightfully 
belonged  to  the  Presbyterians. 

In  the  early  years  of  the  synod,  at  the  annual  meetings, 
much  of  the  time  was  consumed  in  discussing  questions 
of  law  and  order,  and  matters  pertaining  to  the  general 
interest  of  the  church  at  large,  rather  than  to  the  press- 
ing interests  of  the  church  at  home,  and  in  looking  to 
evangelization  of  the  vast  unoccupied  territory.  The 
southern  professorship  at  Princeton  College  was  an 
object  and  a  theme  much  discussed,  and  large  sums  of 
money  were  raised  in  the  synod  for  its  endowment  and 
support,  but  there  was  no  systematic  plan  of  giving  or 
of  collecting  money  for  the  benevolent  causes  of  the 
church,  and  scarcely  any  thing  was  done  for  home  and 
foreign  missions. 

In  1823  the  following  resolution  was  adopted: 

"  Whereas  the  cultivation  of  missionary  fields  does 
afford  a  most  important  aid  to  the  cause  of  missions,  and, 
whereas,  such  fields  might  be  conveniently  cultivated 
within  our  bounds,  either  by  individuals  or  congregations 
collectively :  therefore 

''Resolved,  That  the  members  of  this  synod  use  special 
efifoTts  with  the  churches  under  their  care,  to  promote 
this  laudable  object." 

The  cause  of  "Domestic  Missions"  was  freely  dis- 
cussed in  the  "  Free  Conversation,"  after  the  plan  adopted 
by  the  Synod  of  the  Carolinas,  and  a  synopsis  of  which 
was  published  and  placed  on  record,  and  various  mem- 
bers of  the  synod  were  appointed  as  temporary  supplies 
and. to  do  missionary  work.  About  this  time  and  long 
afterwards,  aside  from  the  faithful  preaching  of  the 
Word — and  the  Word  was  faithfully  preached  by  a  noble 
set  of  men — there  were  no  settled  plans  for  overtaking 


In  North  Carolina.  23 

the  vast  destitutions  in  the  synod.  Each  Presbytery  was 
expected  to  do  the  best  it  could  in  looking  after  its  own 
unoccupied  territory,  it  now  being  held  more  and  more 
by  many  of  the  brethren  that  the  synod  as  a  body  could 
do  nothing,  beyond  a  strict  interpretation  of  the  law  of 
"review  and  control."  The  annual  meetings  of  the  synod 
were  greatly  enjoyed  socially  by  those  who  could  attend, 
but  the  attendance  was  usually  small,  and  in  1823  an 
annual  collection  was  ordered  to  defray  the  expenses  of 
the  representatives,  and  a  very  strong  resolution  was 
adopted  enjoining  attendance.  The  business  of  the  synod, 
aside  from  the  discussion  of  questions  of  general  interest 
to  the  church  and  matters  pertaining  to  the  welfare  of 
societies  and  institutions  of  learning,  was  largely  routine. 

In  1825  the  Union  Theological  Seminary  in  Virginia 
began  to  be  discussed,  and  the  synod  entered  heartily  into 
co-operation  with  the  Virginia  brethren  for  the  formation 
and  welfare  of  this  school  of  the  prophets,  and  it  has 
nobly  stood  by  the  Seminary  until  this  day. 

In  1835  Davidson  College  began  to  engage  the  earnest 
attention  of  the  synod,  and  it  has  never  ceased  to  be  an 
object  and  a  theme  of  deep  and  increasing  interest,  and 
to-day  the  interest  still  abides,  and  the  college  stands  as 
a  monument  to  the  everlasting  honor,  praise  and  wisdom 
of  our  fathers,  and  is  the  pride  and  joy  of  all  Presby- 
terians. 

In  those  days  these  institutions  of  learning  especially 
consumed  much  of  the  time  and  attention  of  the  synod, 
while  the  extension  and  development  of  the  church,  espe- 
cially in  the  destitute  regions  of  the  State,  did  not  receive 
that  attention,  and  were  not  urged  to  that  extent  that 
might  have  been  supposed.  But  the  foundations  of  great 
things  in  the  future  were  being  laid,  and  the  building  of 
these  foundations  were  in  safe  hands,  building  slowly  but 
surely. 


24  The  Presbyterian  Church 

In  1832  a  very  careful  though  not  complete  record  of 
statistics  is  given,  and  this  record  shows  64  ministers,  127 
churches,  832  baptisms,  29  Sunday-schools,  with  more 
than  1,000  scholars,  and  the  number  of  communicants 
was  perhaps  about  8,000.  This  shows  a  gain  of  33  min- 
isters, 42  churches,  and  the  membership  about  doubled 
in  about  twenty  years.  The  reports  for  this  year  of  1832 
were  very  encouraging,  great  revivals  of  religion  were 
enjoyed,  especially  in  Concord  and  Orange  Pres- 
byteries. It  is  said  that  163  persons  were  added  to 
Rocky  River  Church,  126  to  Poplar  Tent  and  Ramah, 
and  130  to  Charlotte  and  Sugar  Creek  churches.  It 
was  estimated  that  there  w^ere  2,000  conversions  within 
the  bounds  of  the  synod,  and  that  600  of  them  were  in 
the  counties  of  Mecklenburg  and  Cabarrus.  But  the 
whole  amount  of  contributions,  raised  in  the  synod  and 
reported  this  year  for  the  combined  missionary,  benevo- 
lent, temperance,  Bible  and  tract  societies  was  only 
$1,734,  and  of  this  amount  %'J2y  was  contributed  by  a 
single  church,  the  Milton  Church,  in  Orange  Presbytery. 

In  1840  there  were  78  ministers  and  137  churches  in 
the  synod,  showing  a  steady  gain  in  membership,  if  not  a 
commensurate  gain  in  contributions. 

About  this  time  the  synod  was  composed  of  a  very  able 
body  of  men,  many  of  whom  were  excellent  teachers  and 
profound  scholars,  as  well  as  able  preachers  of  the 
Gospel.  The  roll  at  this  time  shows  the  names  of  the 
Rev.  Drs.  Caldwell,  Caruthers,  Graham,  Harding,  Lacy, 
McRee,  McPheeters,  Mitchell,  Morrison,  Phillips,  Penick, 
Robinson,  Smith  and  Wilson:  and  the  Williamsons,  the 
Pharrs,  the  Paisleys,  the  Mclvers,  McQueen,  McNair, 
McLean,  Mclntyre,  Stanford,  Tate,  Gretter,  and  a  num- 
ber of  others,  besides  many  noble  and  influential  elders 
who  usually  attended  the  church  courts. 


In  North  Carolina.  25 

The  great  influence  and  abundant  labors  of  these  men 
in  their  day,  their  efforts  in  founding  and  fostering  some 
of  the  institutions  of  learning  which  we  now  enjoy,  and 
in  laying  deep  and  broad  foundations  for  future  genera- 
tions, as  well  as  their  fidelity  in  preaching  a  pure  Gospel, 
deserve  all  honor  and  praise. 

In  1850  there  were  90  ministers  and  150  churches, 
showing  a  gain  of  12  ministers  and  13  churches  in  ten 
years,  and  during  the  next  ten  years,  from  1850  to  i860, 
there  seems  to  have  been  a  general  awakening  along  all 
lines. 

In  1852  a  special  committee,  of  which  the  Rev.  S.  A. 
Stanfield  was  chairman,  presented  the  following  resolu- 
tion, which  was  adopted : 

"  Resolved,  That  this  synod  will  appoint  one  agent  on 
each  of  the  Boards  of  Foreign  Missions,  Domestic  Mis- 
sions and  Education,  and  that  these  agents  be  required  to 
take  into  consideration  the  whole  field  committed  to  their 
supervision,  and  present  at  each  meeting  of  synod  a 
written  report  of  all  that  is  doing  within  the  boundaries 
of  the  synod  on  the  subjects  generally  assigned  to  them; 
and  that  the  consideration  of  these  reports  shall  be  a 
special  order  at  each  meeting  of  the  synod." 

This  was  a  most  important  and  far-reaching  resolution, 
and  proved  to  be  the  beginning  of  a  new  order  of  things. 
The  benevolent  causes  of  the  church  until  now  were  man- 
aged and  controlled  by  the  boards  of  the  General  Assem- 
bly, which  received  and  disbursed  the  greater  part  of 
the  contributions  made  by  the  churches.  The  synod  had 
grown  weary  of  being  lectured  by  foreigners  on  these 
subjects,  and  the  question  now  arose.  Why  not  employ 
our  own  agents  and  do  this  work  ourselves?  And  from 
this  time  ever  afterwards  a  new  spirit  was  apparent  in 


26  The  PRKsnvTERiAN  Church 

the  synoil,  and  there  was  a  marked  increase  of  interest 
and  contributions  for  all  the  benevolent  causes. 

In  the  report  on  Foreign  Missions  for  the  year  1859 
we  find  the  following  remarkable  statement:  "Previous 
to  the  year  1852  there  was  no  fixed  and  well  organized 
plan  of  sustaining  missions  in  this  synod.  No  perma- 
nent agents  were  appointed,  as  we  have  them  now,  to 
advance  the  claims  of  the  boards  in  our  churches.  The 
consequence  was,  that  our  attention  was  seldom  directed 
to  these  vital  questions,  and  our  energies  lay  compara- 
tively dormant.  Before  this,  no  order  of  the  day  was 
ever  made  on  our  docket  for  an  hour  to  be  devoted  to 
the  consideration  of  missions.  Often  did  our  synod  meet 
and  adjourn  without  speaking  a  single  word  or  hearing  a 
single  report  for  the  furtherance  of  any  one  of  the  boards, 
only  as  it  came  from  some  agent  from  abroad.  Far  be  it 
from  your  agent  to  intimate  that  these  subjects  were  not 
dear  to  the  ministers  and  elders  that  attended;  they 
thought  and  prayed  over  them  doubtless,  but  a  mere 
glance  at  the  minutes  wall  show  that  up  to  1852  there 
was  no  regular  organization  in  this  body  for  the  perma- 
nent furtherance  of  the  boards." 

The  author  of  the  above  report  was  the  Rev.  Archibald 
Baker,  who  further  shows,  as  a  result  of  the  resolution 
adopted  in  1852,  that  the  contributions  for  Foreign  Mis- 
sions had  increased  more  than  $3,000,  and  for  Domestic 
Missions  the  amount  contributed  in  1855  ^^'^s  $1,714,  and 
in  1859  t^"*^  amount  collected  and  expended  was  $6,424. 

Another  result  attributed  to  the  adoption  of  the  reso- 
lution of  1852  as  a  decided  step  in  the  progress  of  the 
church  was  the  establishment  as  the  synod's  organ  in 
1857  of  the  "  North  Carolina  Presbyterian." 

This  paper  was  first  published  in  Fayetteville,  N.  C, 
the  first  number  being  issued  in  January,  1858.    The  min- 


Ix  XoRTH  Carolina.  27 

utes  of  synod  contain  frequent  resolutions  of  endorse- 
ment and  commendation  of  the  paper  during  all  these 
years  of  its  history.  It  has  been  an  agency  well  nigh 
indispensable  for  the  building  up  of  the  interests  of  the 
synod,  and  forwarding  the  institutions  under  its  care. 
The  first  editor  of  the  paper  was  the  Rev.  George 
McNeill,  a  brilliant  and  talented  man,  who  died  in  1861. 
The  Rev.  Willis  Miller  was  associate  editor  with  Mr. 
McNeill,  and  had  charge  of  the  paper  for  a  time  after 
his  death.  They  were  succeeded  by  the  Rev.  James 
McNeill  as  editor  and  the  Rev.  John  M.  Sherwood  as 
associate  editor.  The  Rev.  James  McNeill  was  a  brother 
of  George  McNeill,  and  was  the  colonel  of  the  Fifth 
North  Carolina  Regiment  of  Cavalry,  and  was  killed 
while  leading  his  regiment  in  a  charge  near  Petersburg, 
Va.,  on  March  31,  1865.  The  Rev.  Mr.  Sherwood  then 
became  the  sole  editor  and  owner  of  the  paper  until  his 
death,  in  1872.  The  paper  was  sold,  and  for  a  short  time 
the  Rev.  Dr.  H.  G.  Hill  was  editor  as  well  as  part  owner. 
The  paper  was  then  transferred  to  Wilmington,  N.  C, 
and  the  Rev.  T.  L.  De  Veaux  became  editor,  which  posi- 
tion he  held  until  his  death,  in  1876.  He  was  succeeded 
for  a  short  time  by  the  Rev.  Dr.  Joseph  R.  Wilson  as 
editor,  and  ^Ir.  John  ^IcLaurin  as  business  manager. 
For  a  short  time  the  Rev.  J.  ]\I.  Rawlings  was  editor,  in 
connection  with  Mr.  McLaurin.  The  paper  then  became 
the  property  of  Mr.  John  McLaurin,  and  he  was  the  sole 
editor  until  1898.  He  kept  the  paper  for  the  synod  and 
made  it  a  strong  arm  of  the  church,  and  the  synod  will 
never  cease  to  owe  to  him  a  debt  of  gratitude  for  his 
long  and  faithful  service. 

In  1898  he  sold  the  paper  to  a  joint  stock  company,  and 
the  Rev.  A.  J.  McKelway,  D.  D.,  became  the  editor.  The 
paper  was   removed  to  Charlotte,   N.   C,   and  launched 


28  The  Presbyterian  Church 

upon  a  wider  mission  as  a  paper  for  the  whole  church, 
and  the  name  was  changed  to  "  The  Presbyterian 
Standard."  Dr.  McKelway  was  a  ready,  vigorous  and 
forcible  writer,  and  few^  men  ever  w'ielded  a  pen  with 
more  clearness  and  power.  He  retired  as  editor  in  1905, 
and  for  a  year  the  Rev.  Messrs.  T.  J.  Allison  and  W.  T. 
Waller  had  charge  of  the  paper  as  associate  editors,  and 
they  were  succeeded  by  the  Rev.  Dr.  P.  R.  Law  and  Rev. 
Dr.  R.  C.  Reed,  as  editor  and  associate  editor,  who  have 
charge  of  the  paper  at  the  present  time.  May  it  ever  live 
and  prosper,  as  it  has  lived  and  prospered  in  the  past,  as 
a  mighty  power  for  the  extension  of  Christ's  kingdom 
and  -the  evangelization  of  the  State. 

In  i860  the  synod  met  at  Statesville,  N.  C.  The  Rev. 
R.  H.  Lafiferty  was  Moderator,  and  61  ministers  and  50 
ruling  elders  were  present.  The  synod  at  that  time  was 
composed  of  3  Presbyteries,  92  ministers,  184  churches 
and  a  membership  of  about  15,600. 

When  this  meeting  of  the  synod  adjourned  at  States- 
ville, N.  C.  October  27,  i860,  the  members  of  that  body, 
perhaps,  did  not  even  dream,  much  less  think,  that  the 
last  meeting  of  the  Synod  of  North  Carolina,  under  the 
old  system  and  in  connection  with  the  old  assembly,  had 
been  held ;  that  the  last  hymn  ^had  been  sung  and  the  last 
prayer  offered,  and  that  a  national  crisis  was  at  hand, 
and  that  before  they  should  meet  again  the  whole  country 
would  be  in  the  throes  of  an  unprecedented  civil  war! 
The  dreadful  war  between  the  States  (1861-1865),  like 
a  storm-cloud  had  been  gathering  for  a  number  of  years, 
and  at  length  it  suddenly  burst  upon  the  country  in  all 
its  pitiless  fury,  and  deluged  the  whole  land  with  blood, 
and  subjected  the  Church  and  the  State  to  the  most  dis- 
tressing circumstances,  heartrending  scenes  and  bitter 
memories. 


In  North  Carolina.  29 

It  is  not  within  the  scope  of  this  book  to  dwell  upon 
that  period,  or  to  attempt  a  description  of  the  deprivations 
and  sufferings  of  the  people,  at  home  or  in  the  army, 
during  those  dark  and  troublesome  times.  It  is  left  to 
the  faithful  historian  of  the  State  and  of  the  nation  to 
tell  the  fearful  story;  and  yet  we  must  inquire  into  the 
welfare,  progress  and  development  of  the  church  during 
and  after  those  dreadful  vears. 


CHAPTER   III. 

The  Synod  of  North   Carolina  During  the  Civil 
War  and  the  Reconstruction  Period. 

On  November  i,  1861,  the  Synod  of  North  CaroHna 
being  convened  in  Raleigh,  the  following  preamble  and 
resolutions  on  the  state  of  the  country  were  adopted : 

"  Whereas  the  country  is  involved  in  a  bloody  interne- 
cine war,  the  desolations  of  which  threaten  our  citizens, 
and  the  sacrifices  of  which  have  affected  the  church  of 
our  beloved  State;  and 

"  Whereas  by  the  tyranny  and  usurpation  of  the  gov- 
ernment at  Washington,  the  safeguards  of  the  Constitu- 
tion have  been  broken  down,  threatening  all  that  is  dear 
in  civil  liberty  and  all  that  is  precious  in  the  inheritance 
received  from  our  fathers ;  and 

"  Whereas  the  several  Presbyteries  composing  this 
synod  have  in  view  of  these  deeds,  as  well  as  in  view  of 
the  extraordinary  endorsement  of  them  by  the  General 
Assembly  of  the  Presbyterian  Church  of  the  United 
States,  requiring  us  and  our  churches  to  approve  and  to 
pray  for  the  success  of  measures  so  tyrannical  and  iniqui- 
tous, have  formally  and  solemnly  dissolved  all  connection 
with  said  General  Assembly,  declaring,  however,  their 
steadfast  adherence  in  all  respects  to  the  Confession  of 
Faith,  Catechisms,  Form  of  Government,  Book  of  Disci- 
pline and  Directory  of  Worship  of  the  Presbyterian 
Church,  and  have  severally  appointed  delegates  to  meet 
at  Atlanta,  Ga.,  and,  with  other  commissioners  from  the 
several  Presbyteries  of  the  South,  then  and  there  to  con- 


In  North  Carolina.  31 

stitute  and  form  a  General  Assembly  of  the  Presbyterian 
Church  for  the  Confederate  States  of  America :  therefore, 
in  the  fear  of  God  and  under  a  solemn  sense  of  duty,  be  it 
"Resolved,  by  the  Synod  of  North  Carolina,  i.  That 
the  synod  intelligently,  cordially,  solemnly  approves  the 
action  of  its  several  Presbyteries  in  the  premises. 

2.  That  the  synod,  set  and  appointed  by  her  Divine 
Head  as  a  witness  for  the  right  and  for  truth,  deeply, 
truly  sympathizes  with  the  State  and  with  the  Confede- 
rate States  in  their  present  righteous  struggle,  and  cor- 
dially approves  their  action  in  asserting  and  maintaining 
their  sovereignty  and  severing  the  ties  that  bound  us  and 
them  to  the  late  United  States  of  America. 

3.  That  the  synod  regards  the  present  war  on  our  part 
as  a  war  of  defense,  commending  itself  to  our  people's 
efforts,  prayers  and  hearts,  as  a  hallowed  though  stern 
contest  for  sacred  rights,  involving  homes  and  altars, 
liberty  and  religion,  and  to  it  we  solemnly,  prayerfully 
commit  our  persons  and  efforts  and  energies  and  prop- 
erty, our  sons  and  lives. 

4.  That  the  synod  recognizes,  and  here  with  gratitude 
records  the  tokens  of  Divine  favor  extended  to  our  strug- 
gling, bleeding  country,  leading  our  hosts  in  the  day  of 
battle,  shielding  them  under  fearful  peril,  and  giving 
them  brilliant  victories,  for  all  of  which  we  desire  to 
present  fervent  and  unceasing  thanksgivings.    • 

"  5.  That  the  synod  would  embrace  this  momentous 
crisis  in  our  country's  history,  to  urge  pastors,  elders, 
private  Christians  and  our  whole  people  to  the  offering  of 
unceasing  prayers  in  behalf  of  the  Confederate  States,  in 
their  present  noble  struggle  in  defense  of  constitutional 
liberty,  beseeching  our  Covenant  God  and  Father  to 
lead  our  armies,  to  drive  back  our  enemies,  and  early  to 


32  The  Presbyterian  Church 

enable  us  in  His  fear  and  love  to  achieve  a  new  nation's 
greatness." 

The  foregoing  paper  is  here  recorded  in  full  purely  as 
a  matter  of  history,  and  to  show  the  mind  of  the  church 
in  view  of  the  great  struggle. 

On  December  4,  1861,  at  Augusta,  Ga.,  the  Southern 
General  Assembly  was  formed,  and  the  immortal  address 
by  Thornwell  and  the  sermon  by  Palmer  on  that  occasion 
have  gone  into  history,  and  fully  explain  the  causes  from 
a  Presbyterian  standpoint  of  the  great  disruption  and 
struggle.  Thousands  gave  their  lives  for  principles  and 
for  a  cause  which  they  sincerely  deemed  to  be  just  and 
righteous,  and  time  alone  will  prove  the  true  character  of 
those  principles,  and  whether  or  not  the  thousands  gave 
their  lives  in  vain.  In  the  providence  of  God  the  terrible 
war  gave  ample  proof  that  the  best  soldiers,  as  a  rule, 
are  Calvinists,  and  true  to  their  principles  and  deep  con- 
victions, the  ministers,  their  sons  and  the  sons  of  their 
charges,  nobly  bore  their  full  share  of  the  awful  burdens 
of  the  times,  and  they  have  left  to  their  descendants  a 
history  of  untarnished  honor  in  war  and  in  defeat,  and 
full  of  almost  unparalleled  examples  of  deprivation,  suf- 
fering, hardship,  heroism  and  bravery,  of  which  they 
well  may  be  proud. 

In  1862  the  resolution  calling  for  the  appointment  of 
agents  on  benevolence  and  adopted  in  1852  was  amended, 
and  the  Rev.  Messrs.  J.  Rumple,  J.  M.  Sherwood,  Neill 
McKay  and  C.  K.  Caldwell  were  appointed  agents  o'i 
Foreign  Missions,  Domestic  Missions,  Education  and 
Publication,  respectively;  but  the  contributions  to  these 
causes  were  small  and  wholly  inadequate  to  meet  the 
urgent  demands.  It  was  said  in  the  address  to  the 
churches  that  "the  public  mind  was  powerfully  agitated 


In  North  Carolina.  33 

and  in  general  preoccupied  with  public  intereits,  to  the 
partial  or  total  exclusion  of  their  religious  concerns." 
And  yet,  "an  unwonted  spirit  of  prayer  connected  with  a 
profound  and  growing  sense  of  dependence  on  the  favor 
of  Divine  Providence"  was  believed  to  prevail  among  the 
people,  and  was  apparent  in  the  prayer  meetings  and 
church  services,  which  were  well  attended.  The  awful 
realities  of  war  were  now  pressing  hard  upon  the  people, 
and  the  interests  of  the  army  chiefly  engaged  the  atten- 
tion of  the  church  as  well  as  the  State. 

At  this  meeting  of  synod  the  Rev.  Neill  McKay  offered 
a  resolution  that  each  Presbytery  appoint  three  men  to 
collect  and  disburse  funds  for  the  education  of  the  chil- 
dren of  deceased  soldiers,  and  this  was  done  to  a  consid- 
erable extent  until  the  close  of  the  war.  The  synod  in 
those  days  did  nobly  in  its  heroic  efforts  amidst  confu- 
sion and  conflicting  duties,  to  meet  the  demands  of  the 
times.  The  waste  places  at  home,  and  especially  the 
army,  were  crying  for  help  and  greatly  needed  the  min- 
istrations of  the  Gospel,  and  many  of  the  ministers 
entered  the  army  as  chaplains,  while  the  synod  bade  them 
God-speed,  and  at  the  same  time  did  everything  possible 
in  every  department  of  Christian  work. 

At  this  time  Orange  Presbytery  had  in  its  employment 
one  evangelist  and  six  missionaries;  Concord  had  one 
evangelist  and  five  missionaries,  and  Fayetteville  had  five 
missionaries,  and  these  brethren  did  a  noble  work,  but 
they  could  not  begin  to  supply  the  vacant  churches  and 
destitute  fields. 

In  1863  the  Rev.  John  M.  Sherwood,  in  his  report,  said, 
"  We  cannot  hope  to  supply  our  feeble  churches  and  mis- 
sionary fields  with  the  preached  Word,  as  we  would 
gladly  do,  while  the  war  continues.  We  rejoice  to  know 
that  something  has  been  done.     The  work  has  not  been 


34  The  Presbyterian  Church 

overlooked  by  the  Presbyteries.  In  all  of  them  efforts 
have  been  made  to  i^upply,  as  far  as  possible,  the  most 
pressing  wants  of  our  people.  The  wants  of  the  army 
have  been  considered,  and  much  has  been  done  to  supply 
our  soldiers  with  the  preached  Word.  There  are  at 
present  eight  members  of  this  synod  engaged  in  the 
regular  work  of  the  chaplaincy,  viz. :  The  Rev.  Messrs, 
Drury  Lacy,  E.  H.  Harding,  H.  B.  Pratt,  R.  B.  Ander- 
son, J.  W.  F.  Freeman,  Colin  Shaw,  David  Fairley,  J.  H. 
Colton,  and  until  recently,  J.  M.  Sprunt,  who  has  been  in 
the  work  from  the  commencement  of  the  war." 

In  addition  to  the  regular  work  of  these  brethren,  all 
of  the  Presbyteries  enjoined  it  upon  their  members  to 
give  a  portion  of  their  time  to  the  army,  and  many  of 
them  cheerfully  responded  to  the  call.  Among  the  last 
acts  of  the  synod  of  1863  was  to  proclaim  and  recom- 
mend a  day  of  fasting,  humiliation  and  prayer,  to  be  ob- 
served in  earnest  prayer  to  God  on  behalf  of  the  afflicted 
country. 

In  1864  the  synod  met  in  Greensboro,  and  very  little 
was  done  except  the  ordinary  routine  business.  The  most 
important  acts,  however,  of  this  meeting  were  the  formu- 
lation and  adoption  of  an  address  to  the  churches  and  a 
paper  on  the  state  of  the  country.  In  the  latter  some  of 
the  terrible  results  of  the  war  are  enumerated,  "calling 
loudly  for  humiliation  and  prayer,"  and  some  of  the 
tokens  of  the  Divine  favor  are  gratefully  noted  and 
acknowledged,"  calling  for  devout  gratitude  and  thank- 
fulness," and  while  still  believing  in  the  justice  of  the 
cause  and  the  injustice  of  the  oppression,  the  synod  again 
proclaimed  "that  as  humiliation  and  confession  may  well 
be  accompanied  with  thanksgiving  and  praise,"  that 
another  day  of  humiliation  and  prayer  be  observed,  as 
well  as  thanksgiving  and  praise,  in  view  of  the  past  his- 


In  North  Carolina.  35 

tory  and  present  prospects  alike  of  the  country  and  of 
the  church.  The  day  appointed,  November  i6,  1864,  was 
observed,  and  the  people  humbly  and  devoutly  prayed  to 
God  that  the  cruel  war  might  cease,  and  that  the  banner 
of  peace  might  once  more  wave  over  the  land.  And 
before  the  next  meeting  of  the  synod  the  prayers  of  the 
people  were  answered,  and  the  awful  conflict,  covering  a 
period  of  four  years,  was  ended,  and  had  passed  into 
history. 

During  these  four  years  of  war  the  Presbyterian 
Church  in  North  Carolina  gained  only  eight  ministers 
and  five  churches,  and  lost  more  than  2,000  communi- 
cants!  Of  course  the  loss  consisted  largely  of  young 
men,  in  the  prime  of  life,  who  were  the  hope  of  the  church 
and  who  had  fallen  in  battle,  or  who  had  died  in  prison 
or  from  disease  and  exposure  on  the  field. 

After  the  war  was  over  the  synod  met  in  FayetteviUe 
October  25,  1865,  and  intense  anxiety,  not  to  say  deep 
disappointment  and  discouragement,  was  written  upon 
every  face  and  expressed  in  every  tone.  Indeed,  the  war 
was  over,  for  which  all  were  thankful,  but  the  hearts  of 
the  people  were  sad !  Their  property  was  gone,  their 
homes  were  desolate,  their  beloved  and  precious  dead 
were  silent,  and  confusion,  demoralization  and  lawless- 
ness were  seen  in  everything  and  reigned  everywhere. 
The  institution  of  slavery  was  forever  ended,  and  the 
negroes  were  free;  but  this  great  population  of  ignorant 
creatures  had  been  freed  and  left  by  the  victors  in  arms 
to  shift  for  themselves,  and  they  were  homeless,  helpless 
and  dependent,  and,  to  meet  this  new  condition  of  things 
grave  and  perplexing  questions  arose  on  every  hand. 
What  could  the  synod  do?  What  better  could  it  have 
done  than  to  seek  the  help  of  the  Lord?  Therefore  the 
svnod  resolved: 


36  The  Presbyterian  Church 

"  Whereas,  in  times  of  rebuke  and  confusion,  desola- 
tion and  fearfulness,  it  is  the  duty  of  the  people  of  God 
to  draw  near  to  their  King  and  acknowledge  the  justice, 
holiness  and  goodness  of  His  providential  dealings  with 
them,  the  synod  hereby  appoints  a  day  of  fasting,  humilia- 
tion and  prayer,  that  life  may  flow  with  new  vigor  from 
the  great  head  of  the  church,  to  all  the  members  thereof, 
and  that  the  rulers  of  the  land  may  be  guided  to  wise 
counsels  for  its  benefit." 

In  the  Narrative  on  the  State  of  Religion  the  synod 
said,  after  deploring  the  increase  of  the  evils  of  the  times, 
"  We  now  need  an  unusual  amount  of  grace,  if  we  would 
successfully  resist  the  tide  of  iniquity  which  is  rolling  in 
upon  us  like  a  flood." 

The  people  had  now  entered  upon  that  period  which 
is  commonly  called  the  "  Reconstruction  Period." 

This  period  lasted  about  ten  years — until  about  1875 — 
and  for  several  years  immediately  after  the  war  the  peo- 
ple, in  many  respects,  suffered  as  much,  if  not  more,  from 
misrule  and  corruption,  than  during  the  war.  It  is  true 
the  suffering  was  of  a  different  character,  for  the  horror 
of  the  war  could  scarcely  be  repeated  or  surpassed,  but 
these  horrors  cv^ere  followed  by  a  reign  of  terror  which 
tried  men's  souls.  The  people  had  to  endure  for  a  time 
a  military  government,  administered  by  aliens  to  the 
Commonwealth,  and  by  men  who  were  not  in  sympathy 
with  those  who  suffered.  They  had  to  endure  the  in- 
tense bitterness  engendered  by  bad  men  and  by  political 
factions,  and  they  were  made  to  feel  the  heavy  iron  heel 
of  arbitrary  force,  and  to  drink  the  bitter  dregs  of  some 
of  the  results  of  war.  They  were  compelled  to  endure 
the  arrogance  and  insolence  of  many  of  the  enfranchised 
negroes,  who  had  suddenly  been  raised,  politically,  as  the 
peers  of  their  former  masters.  They  were  without  money, 


In  North  Carolina.  37 

except  Confederate  money,  which  was  worthless,  and 
they  had  to  pay  or  promise  to  pay  high  prices  for  every- 
thing, and  to  depend  upon  domestic  help  and  farm  labor 
which  was  utterly  unreliable  and  almost  worthless.  And, 
besides  all  this,  a  spirit  of  demoralization,  disorder  and 
lawlessness  was  abroad  in  the  land,  rendering  social  life 
miserable  and  unsafe.  The  people  of  God,  many  of  whom 
were  in  deep  poverty  and  sorrow,  met  these  reverses  of 
fortune  and  endured  these  trials  in  a  manner  and  spirit 
manifesting  the  grace  of  patience  as  none  but  the  people 
of  God  could  do,  and  which  is  worthy  of  the  admiration 
and  praise  of  all  people  in  all  ages. 

In  1866  the  synod  enjoined  it  upon  Christian  fathers 
and  mothers  to  look  specially  to  their  own  children,  and 
to  teach  them  the  fear  of  God  and  obedience  to  lawful 
authority;  and  in  1867  the  address  to  the  churches  was 
full  of  affectionate  counsels  and  admonitions,  calling  the 
people  to  prayer  and  to  arise  and  rebuild  the  waste  places, 
and  urging  them  to  the  support  of  evangelists  and  mis- 
sionaries. 

About  this  time  there  were  only  five  home  missionaries 
regularly  employed  in  the  synod,  and  not  more  than 
$1,000  was  contributed  for  Domestic  Missions,  and  the 
aggregate  membership  of  the  church  was  about  15,000. 
But,  from  this  time  on,  the  leaven  of  hope  and  activity 
began  to  work,  the  contributions  increased,  and  the  great 
need  of  evangelization  soon  became  the  chief  theme  of 
discussion  in  all  the  Presbyteries. 

In  1868  the  Presbytery  of  Wilmington  was  set  off  from 
Fayetteville,  with  the  following  ten  members,  viz. :  Rev. 
Messrs.  H.  A.  Munroe,  James  Kelly,  Colin  Shaw,  S.  C. 
Alexander,  D.  B.  Black,  H.  L.  Singleton,  B.  F.  Marable, 
J.  M.  Sprunt,  L.  McKinnon  and  S.  H.  Isler.  The  first 
meeting  was  held  in  Wilmington,  N.  C,  November  21, 
1868,  in  the  house  of  Mr.  Patrick  Murphy. 


38  The  1*resbyterian  Church 

The  Rev.  S.  C.  Alexander  says,  in  his  httle  book  called 
"  Miracles  and  Events,"  that  ''  Wilmington  Presbytery 
was  organized  for  the  express  purpose  of  evangelizing 
Eastern  North  Carolina."  He  says  there  was  consider- 
able opposition  to  the  movement,  and  that  he  "spent  a 
whole  night  in  prayer"  before  the  meeting  of  the  Pres- 
bytery, when  these  matters  were  discussed.  He  was  the 
first  evangelist  of  Wilmington  Presbytery,  a  strong 
preacher,  and  a  most  ardent  advocate  for  evangelistic 
work.  He  did  a  noble  work  in  Eastern  North  Carolina 
at  Black  River,  South  River,  Swansboro  and  Topsail 
from  1859  to  1873,  when  he  removed  to  Mecklenburg 
Presbytery,  and  afterwards  to  the  Synod  of  Arkansas. 

In  1869  the  Presbytery  of  Mecklenburg  was  set  off 
from  Concord,  with  the  following  twenty-three  members, 
viz. :  Rev.  Messrs.  R.  H.  Morrison,  J.  E.  Morrison,  J.  D. 
Hall,  W.  W.  Pharr,  John  Douglass,  Robert  Burwell,  A. 
W.  Miller,  G.  D.  Parks,  J.  C.  Williams,  R.  Z.  Johnston, 
William  McDonald,  R.  B.  Anderson,  J.  F.  W.  Freeman, 
R.  N.  Davis,  J.  S.  Barr,  J.  J.  Kennedy,  N.  Shotwell,  Robt. 
H.  Chapman,  T.  E.  Davis,  W.  N.  Morrison,  H.  H.  Banks, 
William  Graves  and  Jacob  Flood.  The  first  meeting  was 
held  in  Morganton,  N.  C,  October  16,  1869,  in  the  parlor 
of  Mrs.  Robert  Pierson. 

The  formation  of  these  two  Presbyteries — one  in  the 
east  and  the  other  in  the  west — tended  greatly  to  encour- 
age the  synod  and  to  further  the  interests  of  evangeliza- 
tion in  the  State.  This  year  more  than  1,000  copies  of 
the  Address  to  the  Churches  was  printed  in  pamphlet 
form  and  widely  distributed,  and  in  that  address  it  was 
said :  "  We  ought  to  have  in  this  synod  at  least  eight  or 
ten  evangelists  to  labor  and  carry  the  banner  of  the  cross 
outside  of  all  our  churches  into  the  wide  regions  beyond, 
in  the  eastern  and  western  parts  oi  the  State.     This  is 


In  North  Carolina.  39 

the  great  and  crying  want  of  the  church  in  this  synod 
to-day."  This  shows  the  state  of  feeUng  in  the  church  in 
1869,  and  from  1870  to  1875  the  state  of  the  country 
gradually  became  more  settled  and  peaceful,  and  the 
church  began  to  realize  as  never  before  the  great  need  of 
evangelization.  The  number  of  Home  Missionaries  and 
evangelists  rapidly  increased  in  all  the  Presbyteries,  as 
veil  as  the  contributions  for  their  support,  and  a  great 
deal  of  aggressive  and  effective  work  was  done  during 
these  years.  But  the  plan  of  overtaking  the  destitutions 
and  planting  Presbyterianism  where  it  had  never  been 
known,  was  confined  solely  to  the  efforts  of  each  individ- 
ual Presbytery,  in  looking  after  its  own  territory,  until 
the  great  synodical  movement  was  inaugurated. 


CHAPTER  IV. 

The  Origin  of  Synodical  Home  Missions  in  North 
Carolina. 

In  October,  1875,  ten  years  after  the  Civil  War,  the 
Synod  of  North  Carolina,  representing  five  Presbyteries, 
105  ministers  213  churches  and  16,200  communicants, 
met  in  Greensboro,  N.  C. 

The  active  operations  of  the  synod  at  that  time,  in  all 
its  departments  of  work,  were  conducted  solely  through 
agents,  who  were  appointed  upon  the  basis  of  the  resolu- 
tion adopted  in  1852,  and  who  had  the  oversight  of  all 
the  great  causes  of  church  work,  and  the  most  important 
causes  were  Foreign  Missions,  Sustentation,  Education, 
Publication  and  Sabbath-Schools.  The  agent  of  Susten- 
tation, however,  was  charged  with  the  oversight  not  only 
of  Sustentation  proper,  but  also  of  evangelistic  work  and 
the  Invalid  Fund,  which  were  classed  under  the  one 
general  head  of  "  Sustentation." 

The  Rev.  H.  G.  Hill,  D.  D.,  was  the  synod's  agent  of 
Sustentation  in  1875,  ^^d  from  his  report  that  year  it 
appears  that  less  than  $8,000  was  raised  in  the  whole 
synod,  including  all  the  salaries  of  all  the  evangelists, 
for  these  three  combined  causes,  and  the  amount  reported 
to  the  assembly  as  contributed  by  the  churches  was  only 
$2,264. 

On  the  approval  of  Dr.  Hill's  report,  the  following 
resolution  was  adopted.  It  is  not  stated  in  the  record 
who  offered  this  resolution,  but  it  is  probable  that  it  was 
offered  by  Dr.  Marable,  Dr.  Rumple  or  Dr.  Hill,  and  it 


In  North  Carolina.  41 

was  the  first  key-note  to  the  future  rise  and  progress  of 
synodical  missions  in  North  Carohna : 

"  Resolved,  That  the  whole  subject  of  the  absolute  and 
relative  aggressiveness  of  the  Presbyterian  Church  in 
North  Carolina  be  referred  to  a  committee,  with  the  in- 
struction to  consider  it,  and  if  it  be  found  that  our  whole 
duty  has  not  been  performed,  said  committee  shall  indi- 
cate the  causes  of  said  delinquencies  and  point  out  the 
remedy." 

The  following  committee  was  appointed :  Rev.  Messrs. 
J.  Rumple,  B.  F.  Marable,  R.  Z.  Johnston  and  Messrs.  D. 
H.  Morrison  and  George  Allen. 

The  next  year  (1876)  the  synod  met  in  Fayetteville, 
and  the  report  of  the  Committee  on  Aggressiveness  was 
heard,  and  after  much  discussion  and  debate  the  matter 
was  recommitted  to  the  same  committee  to  further  con- 
sider the  subject  and  report  next  year,  and  Mr.  D.  F. 
Cannon  and  Hon.  D.  Schenk  were  added  to  the  com- 
mittee. 

In  1877  the  synod  met  in  Charlotte,  and  the  Committee 
on  Aggressiveness  presented  an  abstract  of  the  report 
prepared,  which  was  read  and  accepted,  and  a  full  report, 
together  with  the  abstract,  were  referred  to  a  special  com- 
mittee^ consisting  of  Rev.  H.  G.  Hill,  Rev.  E.  F.  Rock- 
well and  Dr.  C.  L.  Hunter,  to  consider  the  same  and 
recommend  action  for  the  synod.  This  committee  recom- 
mended the  following  action,  which  was  adopted : 

1.  That  the  abstract  furnished  by  the  chairman  of  the 
original  committee  be  published  in  the  Appendix  to  the 
Minutes. 

2.  That  the  report  be  returned  to  the  chairman,  Rev. 


42  The  Presbyterian  Church 

J.  Rumple,  with  the  request  that  he  forward  the  facts  and 
suggestions  of  the  report,  embodied  in  at  least  six  articles 
under  appropriate  headlines,  to  the  "  North  Carolina 
Presbyterian"  for  publication. 

The  "Abstract"  referred  to  above  is  as  follows :  "  The 
Committee  on  Aggressiveness  having  considered  the 
whole  subject  of  the  history  and  progress  of  the  Presby- 
terian Church  in  North  Carolina,  would  respectfully  re- 
port that  the  Presbyterian  Church  was  planted  in  North 
Carolina  about  the  year  1736,  in  Duplin  county,  and 
shortly  after  this  time  in  New  Hanover  county  and  Cum- 
berland, by  Scotch  Presbyterians.  About  the  same  time 
the  Scotch-Irish  Presbyterians  settled  in  the  western  part 
of  the  State.  They  rapidly  increased,  until  at  the  period 
of  the  Revolution,  they  numbered  three  or  four  thousand, 
and  constituted  about  one  seventy-fifth  of  the  population 
of  North  Carolina.  At  this  time^  after  the  lapse  of  a 
hundred  years,  they  numbered  16,544  communicants  in 
214  churches,  with  113  ministers.  The  number  of  mem- 
bers has  been  doubled  about  every  thirty-five  or  forty 
years,  and  at  this  time  the  communicants  in  the  Synod  of 
North  Carolina  numbered  about  one  in  every  seventy  of 
population,  or,  counting  the  Associate  Reformed  Pres- 
byterians and  the  colored  Presbyterians,  they  numbered 
about  one  in  every  fifty  of  population.  There  has  thus 
been  both  an  absolute  and  relative  increase  of  membership 
in  our  churches.  The  ratio  of  gain  is  about  33  per  cent, 
on  the  increase  of  population. 

In  comparison  with  other  denominations,  the  Presby- 
terians  have  increased  in  an  intermediate  ratio.  They 
have  far  exceeded  all  other  denominations  in  the  State 
except  two,  and  these  two,  according  to  the  numbers  re- 
ported by  them,  have  largely  exceeded  the  Presbyterians. 
Looking  upon  the  whole  work  done  by  our  church  since 


In  North  Carolina.  43 

its  origin  in  the  State  we  have  reason  to  thank  God  and 
take  courage  for  the  future. 

At  the  same  time,  doubtless,  we  have  failed  to  perform 
our  whole  duty.  With  our  educated  ministry,  our  intelli- 
gent, influential  and  wealthy  members,  we  ought  to  have 
planted  the  Presbyterian  Church  in  ever}^  corner  of  the 
Stale.  Without  pausing  to  particularize  the  various 
hindrances  to  our  success,  your  committee  would  briefly 
point  out  the  measures  they  deem  proper  for  the  future 
growth  of  Presbyterians. 

1.  The  first  is  the  more  general  employment  of  evan- 
gelists. Let  synods  and  Presbyteries  and  ministers  press 
this  work,  enlighten  the  churches,  and  strive  to  secure 
more  liberal  contributions  to  this  cause. 

2.  The  next  is  the  more  frequent  efforts  of  our  settled 
ministers  to  do  missionary  work  in  regions  bordering 
upon  their  churches. 

3.  An  effort  to  preach  more  popular  sermons  and  a 
greater  endeavor  to  secure  immediate  results  from  their 
labors. 

4.  An  awakening  of  our  eldership  to  a  sense  of  the  re- 
sponsibility resting  upon  them,  especially  in  attending 
church  courts  and  shaping  the  legislation  of  the  church. 

5.  The  more  systematic,  orderly  and  punctual  adminis- 
tration of  our  financial  affairs  under  the  control  of  the 
deacons.  (Signed)  J.  Rumple,  Chairman. 

The  foregoing  paper  and  action  of  the  synod  seem  not 
to  have  been  fully  satisfactory,  for  on  the  next  day  the 
following  resolution  was  adopted : 

"  Resolved,  That  a  committee  of  five  be  appointed  to 
report  at  the  next  meeting  of  synod,  'as  to  what  can  be 
done  to  promote  the  greater  efficiency  of  evangelistic 
woik  within  our  bounds.'  " 


44  The  Presbyterian  Church 

It  is  not  stated  in  the  recoid  who  offered  this  resolu- 
tion, but  it  is  ahogether  probable  that  it  was  offered  by 
the  Rev.  Dr.  B.  F.  Marable,  who  was  at  this  time  one 
of  the  strongest  debaters,  as  well  as  one  of  the  strongest 
advocates  for  aggressive  evangelization  in  the  synod. 
The  Moderator  appointed  as  the  committee  to  consider 
this  matter  the  Rev.  ^Messrs.  B.  F.  Marable,  H.  G.  Hill, 
J.  W.  Primrose,  G.  D.  Parks  and  B.  L.  Beall. 

Perhaps  one  of  the  greatest  hindrances  to  aggressive- 
ness in  evangelistic  work  at  this  time  was  the  confusion 
produced  in  the  minds  of  many  of  the  brethren  by  the 
different  views  held  and  advocated  as  to  the  nature,  war- 
rant and  functions  of  the  evangelist.  Consequently  a 
committee  had  been  appointed  at  the  last  meeting  of 
synod  to  bring  in  a  report  on  this  subject.  The  Rev. 
John  W.  Primrose  v;as  chairman  of  this  committee, 
which  reported  the  following  resolution,  which  was 
adopted : 

"Resolved,  That  in  the  judgment  of  this  synod,  a 
scriptural  evangelist  is  just  a  presbyter  commissioned  to 
preach  the  Gospel  without  pastoral  charge,  wherever  in 
the  judgment  of  the  Presbytery  his  services  may  be 
needed  for  the  conversion  of  sinners,  and  entrusted  by 
the  Presbytery  with  just  so  much  of  the  joint  power  as  in 
each  case  may  be  lawful  and  expedient." 

Dr.  Primrose  was  an  evangelist  of  Orange  Presbytery, 
in  the  eastern  part  of  the  State,  from  1871  until  1880,  and 
under  his  labors  the  churches  of  Tarboro,  Nahalah,  Lit- 
tleton and  Rocky  Mount  were  organized.  He  then  became 
pastor  of  the  Oxford,  Shiloh  and  Grassy  Creek  churches, 
and  afterwards,  for  six  years,  he  w-as  pastor  of  the 
Second  Church  in  Wilmington,  and  in  1891  he  returned 
to  his  first  love,  the  evangelistic  work,  having  accepted 


In  North  Carolina.  45 

a  call  from  the  Synod  of  Missouri.  He  died  at  Green- 
ville, Miss.,  February  13,  1907.  His  varied  and  fruitful 
labors  were  crowned  with  abundant  success.  He  was  a 
fine  scholar,  a  forcible  writer,  preacher  and  debater,  an 
organizer  and  a  teacher  of  youth,  and  he  died  beloved  and 
honored  in  the  midst  of  abundant  labors.  In  the  Synod 
of  North  Carolina  in  his  day  he  ranked  with  Hill  and 
Marable,  Alexander  and  Rumple  and  others  in  their  noble 
fight  for  aggressiveness  in  overtaking  the  destitutions. 

In  1878  the  synod  met  in  Goldsboro,  and  the  Commit- 
tee on  "What  can  be  done  to  promote  the  greater  effi- 
ciency of  Evangelistic  Work  in  our  bounds,"  made  its 
report,  which  was  received.  After  considerable  discus- 
sion the  whole  subject  was  again  recommitted  to  the  com- 
mittee, with  the  exception  of  the  first  item  of  the  report, 
with  the  instruction  to  report  next  year.  The  Rev.  Dr. 
Rumple  was  added  to  the  committee,  and  the  first  item 
of  the  report  which  was  adopted  was  as  follows : 

"  That  synod  does  most  earnestly  urge  upon  those 
Presbyteries  having  destitute  territory  that  they  employ 
each  at  least  one  evangelist  for  his  entire  time." 

In  advocating  the  adoption  of  this  resolution,  the  Rev. 
Dr.  Hill  took  the  advanced  ground  that  each  Presbytery, 
regardless  of  destitute  territory,  needed  and  should  em- 
ploy at  least  one  evangelist.  This  position  met  with 
strong  opposition,  and  called  forth  a  warm  debate,  but 
the  leaven  was  working  and  the  time  was  not  far  distant 
when  this  very  position  became  the  settled  policy  of  the 
church. 

The  following  resolution  was  also  adopted  at  this 
meeting : 

''  Resolved,  That  the  synod  shall  hold  a  synodical  mis- 


46  The  Presbyterian  Church 

sionary  meeting  on  Friday  night  of  each  session;  that 
the  agent,  in  addition  to  reading  his  report,  be  directed 
to  secure  speakers  to  make  addresses  on  the  subject,  and 
tliat  a  collection,  in  connection  with  these  services,  be 
taken  for  this  cause." 

In  1879  ^^^^  synod  met  in  Statesville,  and  the  Rev.  Dr. 
^larable,  the  chairman  of  the  Committee  on  "What  can 
be  done  to  promote  the  greater  efficiency  of  Evangelistic 
Work  in  our  bounds,"  was  absent.  The  committee, 
however,  submitted  a  report,  which  was  laid  on  the  table, 
but  the  following  resolution  was  adopted: 

"  Resolved,  That  the  synod  hereby  appoint  a  synodical 
agent  of  evangelistic  labor,  to  consider  and  report  an- 
nually on  white  and  colored  evangelization  in  its  bounds." 

By  this  action  the  cause  of  evangelistic  labor  was  sepa- 
rated from  the  general  cause  of  Sustentation,  and  it  now 
became  the  object  of  general  interest  and  the  subject  of 
much  discussion  in  the  church  courts. 

The  Rev.  Charles  M.  Payne  was  elected  the  first  agent 
of  Evangelistic  Labor,  and  on  the  evening  of  his  appoint- 
ment, October  24,  1879,  the  first  synodical  home  mis- 
sionary meeting  ui  North  Carolina  was  held.  These  were 
long  steps  in  advance  of  anything  done  as  yet  along  the 
line  of  "aggressiveness'  in  overtaking  the  destitutions. 

In  1880  the  synod  met  in  Raleigh,  and  the  agent  of 
evangelistic  labor,  Rev.  C.  M.  Payne,  made  his  first 
report.  A  summary  of  this  report  will  show  the  vast 
destitution  of  Presbyterian  churches  and  Presbyterian 
preaching  in  North  Carolina  at  that  time. 

In  Orange  Presbytery  alone  there  were  18  counties 
which  had  no  Presbyterian  church  within  their  bounds, 
and  nine  counties  had  only  one  church  each,  making  27 


In  North  Carolina.  47 

counties  in  one  Presbytery  alone  almost  entirely  destitute 
of  the  Gospel  through  our  church. 

The  synod  at  this  time  had  five  Presbyteries,  226 
churches,  and  18,356  communicants,  and  it  included 
within  its  bounds  94  counties.  Of  these  94  counties  29 
had  no  Presbyterian  church,  24  had  only  one  each,  making 
a  total  of  53  counties  in  the  State  almost  totally  destitute 
of  Presbyterianism.  And  for  this  vast  field  there  were 
just  two  evangelists,  Rev.  Messrs.  S.  C.  Alexander  and 
J.  H.  Thornwell,  employed  for  their  w^iole  time,  and  five 
others  who  gave  as  much  as  one-fourth  of  their  time  to 
the  work,  but  principally  in  old  fields  and  not  in  purely 
missionary  territory.  And  the  total  amount  contributed 
in  the  synod  for  evangelistic  work  was  not  quite  $2,300. 

This  report  disclosing  these  facts  necessarily  called 
forth  ''considerable  discussion,"  and  doubtless  awakened 
in  the  minds  and  hearts  of  the  brethren  the  stern  fact  that 
these  conditions  must  be  met,  and  met  heroically.  Con- 
sequently many  were  the  ways  and  means  suggested  and 
devised,  but  as  yet  the  remedy  seemed  to  lie  within  the 
province  of  each  Presbytery  to  act  for  itself.  Therefore 
the  following  resolution  was  adopted : 

"  Resolved,  That  the  Presbyteries  be  urged  to  place 
evangelists  in  their  destitute  fields ;  that  the  settled  minis- 
ters be  urged  to  do  as  much  missionary  work  as  possible, 
and  that  the  churches  be  urged  to  give  freely  to  this  ex- 
ceedingly important  cause." 

This  resolution  was  offered  by  the  Rev.  Dr.  L.  McKin- 
non,  who  at  that  time  was  one  of  the  most  active  and 
vigorous  members  of  the  -synod,  and  he  very  strongly 
advocated  the  plan  as  one  remedy  for  overtaking  the  des- 
titutions ;  that  the  settled  ministers,  especially  in  the 
towns  and  cities,  become  missionaries,  to  the  extent  of 


48  The  Presbyterian  Church 

giving  an  occasional  Sunday  and  several  days  in  the  week 
during  a  month  to  the  great  work  outside  of  their  own 
congregations. 

It  would  seem  that  almost  every  possible  suggestion 
had  now  been  made  to  the  Presbyteries,  and  the  ministers, 
elders,  deacons  and  membership  of  the  churches  had  been 
repeatedly  urged  to  put  forth  their  best  endeavors  along 
the  line  of  aggressiveness,  in  overtaking  the  destitutions ; 
and  while  a  great  deal  had  been  accomplished,  yet  "much 
land  remained  to  be  possessed." 

In  1881  the  synod  met  in  Salisbury,  and  this  meeting 
marks  an  era  in  the  history  of  the  Presbyterian  Church 
in  North  Carolina. 

The  agent  of  Evangelistic  Labor  made  his  report,  which 
was  approved,  and  it  appeared  from  the  report  that  the 
resolutions  adopted  last  year  had  not  been  without  sub- 
stantial results,  especially  among  settled  ministers  who 
had  done  much  missionary  work. 

A  paper  was  now  offered,  undersigned  by  the  Rev. 
Messrs.  H.  G.  Hill,  L.  McKinnon,  D.  E.  Jordan,  W.  E. 
Mclllwaine  and  C.  M.  Payne,  touching  the  supply  of  the 
destitutions  of  the  synod  by  synodical  effort. 

Attention  is  called  to  the  names  attached  to  this  paper. 
These  names,  together  with  B.  F.  Marable,  J.  Rumple,  J. 
W.  Primrose  and  others,  among  whom  were  S.  C.  Alex- 
ander, G.  D.  Parks,  F.  H.  Johnston  and  J.  C.  Alexander, 
arid  the  elders,  George  Allen,  B.  F.  Hall  and  others, 
represent  some  of  the  leading  spirits  in  the  early  rise  of 
the  synodical  movement.  The  names  of  the  Rev.  Dr. 
Hill  and  Mr.  B.  F.  Hall  have  been  intimately  associated 
with  the  synodical  movement  from  its  very  inception  until 
the  present  time. 

The  paper  now  offered  presented  an  entirely  new  fea- 
ture   from  all  previous    suggestions   in  the    missionary 


In  North  Carolina.  49 

operations  of  the  synod.  It  raised  the  old  questions  of 
the  rights,  functions  and  prerogatives  of  the  synod  as  a 
court  or  legislative  body,  and  it  naturally  created  ''much 
discussion."  The  paper  met  with  strong  opposition,  and 
the  debate  continued  at  intervals  for  two  or  three  days, 
the  question  at  issue  being,  "  Did  the  synod,  as  a  body, 
have  the  right  to  conduct  evangelistic  work?"  This 
question  of  long  standing  was  now  fought  out  and  set- 
tled in  the  affirmative,  and  Synodical  Home  Missions  zvas 
born! 

The  paper  having  been  carefully  considered  seriatim, 
amended  and  adopted,  is  as  follows : 

"  In  view  of  the  fact  that  there  are  in  the  bounds  of 
this  synod  about  53  counties  of  the  94,  and  about  500,000 
people  destitute,  or  nearly  so,  of  any  church  ministrations 
of  our  faith  and  order;  and  as  this  destitution  is  so  un- 
equally distributed  among  the  Presbyteries,  that  some  of 
them  cannot  possibly  for  at  least  a  number  of  years 
occupy  their  destitute  regions,  the  following  scheme  of 
missionary  labor  is  presented  to  the  synod  for  careful 
consideration,  and,  if  found  practicable,  for  adoption: 

''i.  That  this  synod  appoint  two  ministers  to  labor  in 
the  destitute  regions  of  our  bounds,  and  that  Presbyteries 
comprising  this  synod  be  requested  to  authorize  these 
ministers  to  labor  in  their  bounds  as  evangelists. 

"2.  That  a  committee,  consisting  of  Mr.  George  Allen, 
of  Orange  Presbytery;  Mr.  William  R.  Kenan,  of  Wil- 
mington Presbytery ;  Mr.  S.  H.  Wiley,  of  Concord  Pres- 
bytery ;  Mr.  E.  T.  McKethan,  of  Fayetteville  Presbytery, 
and  Gen.  R.  D.  Johnston,  of  Mecklenburg  Presbtery, 
be  appointed  to  raise  the  sum  of  $3,000,  not  by  ordinary 
church  collections,  but  my  special  efforts  among  indi- 
viduals of  means  and  such  as  feel  an  interest  in  this  work. 


50  The  Presbyterian  Church 

"3.  That  those  home  missionaries  appointed  by  synod 
are  not  to  enter  upon  their  work  until  the  chairman  of  the 
committee  appointed  to  raise  the  funds  shall  report  to 
the  chairman  of  the  Committee  of  Synodical  Evangelistic 
Labor  that  the  necessary  funds  have  been  secured. 

"4.  That  Rev.  C.  M.  Payne,  Rev.  H.  G.  Hill,  D.  D., 
Rev.  J.  Rumple,  Rev.  G.  D.  Parks  and  Rev.  J.  C.  Alex- 
ander, or  their  successors  in  office  as  chairmen  of  Home 
Missions  in  their  respective  Presbyteries,  be  appointed  a 
Synodical  Evangelistic  Committee  to  superintend  the 
general  conduct  of  this  work,  and^  if  necessary,  between 
the  meetings  of  synod,  fill  vacancies  by  election. 

''5.  That  in  order  to  prevent  any  conflict  between  Pres- 
byterial  and  Synodical  rights  and  duties,  these  home  mis- 
sionaries shall  labor  in  any  Presbytery  only  when  invited 
by  the  chairman  of  Home  Missions  in  that  Presbytery, 
and  then  in  conformity  to  the  suggestions  of  the  local 
authorities  of  said  Presbytery." 

Thus  synodical  Home  Missions  was  launched,  and  it 
was  ordered  that  a  committee  of  five,  consisting  of  Revs. 
D.  E.  Jordan,  L.  McKinnon,  C.  M.  Payne  and  Elders 
A.  G.  Neel  and  S.  C.  Rankin,  be  appointed  to  nominate 
the  first  synodical  evangelists  or  home  missionaries. 

This  committee  reported  recommending  the  Rev.  D.  E. 
Jordan  and  the  Rev.  W.  E.  Mclllwaine.  The  report  was 
adopted,  and  these  brethren  were  duly  elected  as  the  first 
synodical  missionaries. 

In  1882  the  synod  met  in  Asheville.  The  Rev.  C.  M. 
Payne,  chairman  of  the  new  Synodical  Evangelistic  Com- 
mittee, made  his  report,  which  seemed  to  forecast  a  com- 
plete failure  of  the  scheme  of  the  synod.  For  the  past 
year  the  success  of  the  scheme  depended  upon  the  raising 
of  $3,000  before  the  evangelists  could  enter  upon  their 
work,  and  a  more  serious  question  was  to  arrange  for  a 


In  North  Carolina.  51 

similar  amount  from  year  to  year.  Both  the  Finance  and 
Evangelistic  Committees  used  every  means  possible  and 
labored  faithfully  to  secure  the  required  sum  immediately 
after  the  last  meeting  of  synod,  and  a  considerable 
amount  was  raised,  but  not  the  whole  amount.  And  in 
the  meantime  the  Rev.  D.  E.  Jordan  had  accepted  and  the 
Rev.  W.  E.  Mclllwaine  had  declined  the  position  of 
synodical  missionary.  The  committee  met  in  Salisbury 
February  7,  1882,  and  elected  the  Rev.  L.  McKinnon 
in  the  place  of  Mr.  Mclllwaine,  and  resolved  to  renew 
their  efforts.  The  committee  met  again  in  Raleigh  Feb- 
ruary 24,  1882,  and  in  the  mean  time  the  Rev.  Mr. 
McKinnon  had  declined  to  accept  the  position  of  mis- 
sionary, and  the  Rev.  Mr.  Jordan  had  been  hindered  from 
entering  the  field  on  account  of  the  failure  to  raise  the 
required  $3,000,  and  the  Finance  Committee  reported 
that  the  amount  already  pledged  had  been  promised  con- 
ditionally, and  that  there  was  no  prospect  of  raising  the 
required  $3,000  under  the  present  plan.  This  committee 
claimed  that  another  plan  must  be  devised,  which  would 
provide  for  the  future,  and  enlist  the  co-operation  of  the 
Presbyteries  and  the  churches.  It  was  said  that  the 
scheme  had  failed  to  enlist  the  endorsement  and  co-opera- 
tion of  the  Presbyteries,  and  had  met  with  '^decided  oppo- 
sition all  over  the  synod,  as  being  inexpedient  and  imprac- 
ticable." 

The  Evangelistic  Committee,  after  calling  attention  to 
the  greatly  increased  interest  and  activity  by  the  Presby- 
teries in  the  work  during  the  past  year,  which  was  rightly 
attributed  to  the  synodical  movement,  with  deep  regret 
asked  to  be  discharged.  The  "movement"  at  present 
seemed  to  be  a  dismal  failure,  and  its  promoters  were 
keenly  disappointed  and  greatly  discouraged,  but  it  was 
not  a  failure — it  had  been  born,  and,  like  an  infant,  it 


52  The  Presbyterian  Church 

must  needs  be  helpless  and  dependent  for  a  time,  but  it 
had  been  boni  and  born  to  live. 

In  1883  the  synod  met  in  Wilmington.  The  Rev.  C. 
IM.  Payne  tendered  his  resignation  as  agent  of  Evangelis- 
tic Labor,  and  the  Rev.  James  C.  Alexander  was  elected 
as  his  successor. 

Dr.  Payne  did  a  splendid  work  during  the  time  of  his 
being  agent  of  Evangelistic  Labor,  and  indeed  he  never 
ceased  to  be,  as  long  as  he  lived,  a  man  of  power  and  a 
brother  beloved  in  the  synod.  He  was  a  man  of  com- 
manding personal  appearance,  endowed  with  fine  intel- 
lectual qualities,  and  possessed  a  voice  and  manner  as 
soft  and  gentle  as  a  woman,  and  through  his  untiring 
efforts  by  preaching,  visiting,  letter-writing,  persuasive 
manners,  and  general  popularity,  many  souls  were  won 
for  the  j\Iaster  and  much  was  done  in  awakening  the 
minds  of  the  people  and  arousing  interest  in  the  great 
cause  of  missions.  He  was  a  staunch  friend  of  the  great 
Synodical  Movement,  which  he  helped  to  launch  in  1881, 
until  the  time  of  his  death,  which  occurred  September  13, 
1900. 

During  the  time  of  the  agency  of  the  Rev.  J.  C.  Alex- 
ander, after  the  retirement  of  Dr.  Payne,  the  synod  for 
several  years  was  occupied  largely  with  other  things  than 
the  cause  of  Home  ^Missions,  especially  with  judicial  mat- 
ters. 

Mr.  Alexander  was  a  man  of  great  executive  ability, 
and  he  worked  faithfully  and  zealously  for  the  great 
cause,  which  temporarily  had  received  a  backset,  but 
which  was  destined  to  arise  again,  in  due  time  with  re- 
newed vigor  and  power. 

In  1884  the  synod  met  at  Winston,  and  the  agent's 
report  showed  that  14  ministers  were  employed  as  evan- 
gelists by  the  Presbyteries  for  a  part  of  their  time;  and 


In  Xorth  Carolina.  53 

that  a  net  gain  of  eight  churches  and  270  members  had 
been  made  during  the  past  year ;  but  there  still  remained 
29  counties  in  which  there  was  no  Presbyterian  church, 
and  24  counties  in  which  there  was  but  one  church  each. 

In  1885  the  synod  met  at  Reidsville,  and  this  meeting 
was  largely  occupied  with  a  judicial  case.  The  agent  of 
Evangelistic  Labor,  Rev.  J.  C.  Alexander,  was  the  Mode- 
rator of  this  meeting,  and  his  report  this  year  showed  the 
work  to  be  "prosperous  and  encouraging." 

At  this  meeting  the  Rev.  J.  Henry  Smith,  D.  D.,  was 
appointed  to  deliver  an  address  next  year  on  the  "  Rise, 
Progress,  and  Prospects  of  the  Presbyterian  Church  in 
the  United  States,"  and  the  Rev.  W.  E.  Mclllwaine  was 
appointed  to  deliver  an  address  on  "  The  Duty  of  the 
Church  in  Securing  a  Larger  Number  of  Ministers." 

The  next  year,  in  1886,  the  synod  met  in  Concord,  and 
was  still  occupied  with  judicial  matters. 

The  Rev.  Dr.  Smith  delivered  his  address  on  the  "  Rise, 
Progress  and  Prospects  of  the  Presbyterian  Church  in  the 
United  States,"  and  the  Rev.  Dr.  Hill  delivered  an 
address  on  "  Ministerial  Support,"  and  both  of  these 
brethren  received  the  thanks  of  the  synod. 

At  this  meeting  the  Rev.  J.  C.  Alexander  laid  down 
the  work  as  agent  of  Evangelistic  Labor,  and  the  Rev. 
J.  W.  Primrose  was  elected  as  his  successor. 

On  November  15,  1886,  soon  after  this  meeting  of 
synod,  the  Rev.  J.  C.  Alexander  suddenly  passed  from 
earth  to  heaven.  He  was  a  faithful  preacher  and  a  zeal- 
ous workman — practical,  pointed,  earnest  and  judicious. 
In  Orange  Presbytery,  especially,  he  was  a  wise  and 
trusted  counsellor  and  a  brother  beloved.  He  was  a  man 
of  deep  convictions  and  steady  purpose,  and  untiring  in 
his  efforts  for  the  spread  of  the  Gospel.  For  many  years 
he  was  entrusted  with  the  conduct  of  Home  Missions  in 


54  The  Presbyterian  Church 

Orange  Presbytery,  and  the  additional  work  of  the  synod, 
together  with  the  cares  of  a  large  pastorate,  were  thought 
to  be  by  his  friends  too  heavy  a  burden  to  bear,  and  pos- 
sibly shortened  his  days.  He  did  a  noble  work,  and  left 
behind  him  a  noble  record.  He  loved  his  God  and  his 
people,  and  his  people  loved  him,  and  his  end  was  perfect 
peace. 

In  1887  t^^^  synod  met  in  Fayetteville,  and  continued  to 
be  much  engaged  with  judicial  matters. 

The  Rev.  W.  E.  Mclllwaine  at  this  meeting,  according 
to  appointment,  delivered  his  address  on  "  The  Duty  of 
the  Church  in  Securing  a  Larger  Number  of  Ministers," 
and  he  received  the  thanks  of  the  synod  for  the  address. 

The  closing  words  of  the  report  of  Dr.  Primrose,  now 
the  agent  of  Evangelistic  Labor,  were  as  follows :  "  There 
is  gratifying  evidence  of  progress  and  increasing  zeal  in 
this  department  of  labor  throughout  the  synod." 

This  being  true,  and  yet  no  action  being  taken,  and 
no  effort  being  made  to  revise  the  plan  and  carry  out  the 
great  principle  adopted  in  1881,  was  calculated  to  dis- 
courage many  of  the  members  of  the  synod,  and  conse- 
quently some  of  them,  particularly  the  Rev.  W.  E.  Mclll- 
waine, went  away  from  this  meeting  of  synod  much  dis- 
satisfied on  account  of  what  was  not  done,  and  deter- 
mined that  something  should  be  done  at  the  next  synod, 
looking  to  the  evangelization  of  the  State,  either  by 
Synodical  Home  Missions  or  by  some  other  possible  and 
feasible  plan.  And  the  next  meeting  of  synod  was  des- 
tined to  be  a  memorable  one  in  North  Carolina. 


CHAPTER  V. 

The  Inauguration  of  Synodical  Home  Missions  in 
North  Carolina  and  the  ]\Ien  of  the  Times. 

The  meeting  of  synod  held  in  Goldsboro  in  1888,  in 
many  respects,  was  unquestionably  one  of  the  most  re- 
markable meetings  of  the  kind  ever  held  in  the  State. 

It  was  remarkable  from  the  fact  that  a  ruling  elder, 
for  the  first  time  in  the  history  of  the  church,  was  elected 
Moderator,  the  Hon.  A.  M.  Scales,  who  at  this  time  was 
the  Governor  of  North  Carolina,  was  the  Moderator  of 
this  meeting.  It  was  remarkable  from  the  fact  that  it 
was  freighted  with  an  unusual  number  of  memorials, 
praying  for  relief  and  demanding  great  and  important 
changes,  and  laying  the  foundation  for  great  enterprises. 
It  was  also  remarkable  from  the  fact  of  the  able  and 
memorable  speeches  that  were  made,  the  amount  of  work 
accomplished,  and  last,  but  not  least,  the  inauguration  of 
Synodical  Home  I^Iissions. 

Another  thing  in  connection  with  this  meeting  which 
was  remarkable,  was  the  calling  of  a  convention  in  Golds- 
boro on  the  day  before  the  synod  met,  October  23,  1888, 
to  consider  the  interests  of  Home  ]\Iissions. 

There  is  no  record  of  this  convention  in  the  minutes 
of  synod,  but  the  facts  are  these:  The  Rev.  Wilham  E. 
Mclllwaine  was  one  of  the  brethren  who  went  away  from 
the  last  meeting  of  synod  at  Fayetteville,  feeling  much 
discouraged  on  account  of  what  was  not  done  for  the 


56  ThK  pRKSnYTERIAN   ChURCII 

cause  of  State  evangelization,  and  it  was  he  who  con- 
ceived the  thought  of  calling  this  convention.  He  wrote 
to  the  chairmen  of  the  Home  Mission  Committees  of  the 
Presbyteries,  he  himself  being  the  chairman  in  Mecklen- 
burg Presbytery,  and  sent  to  them  the  following  call  for 
the  convention,  which  was  duly  signed  by  each  of  them. 

Synodical  Home  Missionary  Convention. 

"After  conference  with  a  number  of  the  friends  of  this 
cause  in  the  synod,  we  the  undersigned  chairmen  of  the 
Home  Missions  Committee  in  our  respective  Presbyteries 
do  hereby  call  a  convention  to  meet  in  Goldsboro,  N.  C, 
on  Tuesday  the  23d  of  October  (inst),  for  the  purpose 
of  giving  this  subject  a  more  thorough  consideration 
than  it  usually  receives  in  the  synod.  The  following  pro- 
gram has  been  agreed  upon : 

"  The  opening  address — Rev.  F.  H.  Johnston,  D.  D. ; 
addresses  by  each  of  the  chairmen  of  the  Home  Missions 
Committees  in  the  different  Presbyteries,  setting  forth  as 
briefly  as  possible  the  extent,  needs, and  prospects  of  their 
respective  fields ;  addresses  of  evangelists  of  Presbyteries, 
with  the  map  of  synod  before  them,  in  reference  to  their 
special  work;  a  general  discussion  of  the  following  sub- 
jects, in  which  all  present  shall  be  invited  to  participate — 

''i.  Ought  there  not  be  a  more  equal  division  of  the 
synod  among  the  Presbyteries? 

''2.  Would  it  not  be  advisable  for  the-  synod,  at  the 
approaching  meeting,  to  take  steps  to  place  at  least  one 
evangelist  in  its  mission  field? 

''3.  What  are  some  of  the  hindrances  to  this  work  in 
the  Presbyteries  and  synod,  and  how  can  these  be  re- 
moved ? 


In  Xorth  Carolina.  57 

''4.  What  should  be  done  to  secure  a  thorough  consid- 
eration of  the  subject  of  Home  Missions  at  each  regular 
meeting  of  synod? 

(Signed)         Alexander  Sprunt,  Orange  Presbytery; 
R.  B.  Anderson,  Concord  Presbytery; 
H.  G.  Hill,  Fayetteville  Presbytery; 
P.  H.  Hoge,  Wilmington  Presbytery ; 
W.  E.  McIllwaine,,  ^Mecklenburg  Pres'y." 

The  convention  was  held,  and  the  foregoing  program 
was  fully  carried  out.  A  memorial  was  adopted  to  be 
presented  to  the  synod  the  next  day.  x\nd  a  paper  was 
prepared  for  this  convention  by  the  Rev.  P.  H.  Hoge, 
D.  D.,  on  the  "constitutionality  of  synodical  evangelists." 
This  paper  was  afterwards  published  in  the  "  North 
Carolina  Presbyterian,"  and  it  was  a  most  able,  con- 
vincing and  unanswerable  argument  in  favor  of  the  great 
cause  at  issue  in  these  times.  But  Dr.  Hoge,  perhaps, 
was  not  as  familiar  as  some  other  members  of  this  con- 
vention with  the  fact  that  this  question  and  kindred  topics 
had  been  discussed  in  the  synod  for  years,  and  that  the 
great  principle  touching  these  matters  had  been  settled 
in  1881.  Dr.  Hoge  and  Dr.  Sprunt  became  members  of 
the  synod  in  1885,  and  at  the  present  time  they  ranked 
with  Drs.  Hill,  Marable,  Johnston,  Primrose,  Mclllwaine 
and  others  as  leading  spirits  in  the  great  Synodical  Move- 
ment. 

Dr.  Mclllwaine  had  spent  much  of  his  time  as  a  most 
successful  evangelist,  and,  like  Dr.  Primrose  and  others, 
knew  from  personal  experience  and  observation  the  great 
need  of  evangelists,  and  he  had  the  joy  and  the  satisfac- 
tion of  seeing  the  convention  which  he  had  called  a  great 
success,  and  destined  to  be  far  reaching  and  blessed  in 
its  results,  as  one  of  the  means  of  reviving  and  putting 


58  TiiE  Presbyterian  Church 

into  operation  the  paper  which  he  had  signed  and  the 
plan  adopted  in  1881  for  overtaking  the  destitutions  by 
"synodical  effort."  He  did  a  noble  work  for  the  synod, 
and  especially  for  Mecklenburg  Presbytery  before  leaving 
the  bounds  of  his  native  State.  He  was  intimately  asso- 
ciated with  almost  every  forward  movement  of  the  church. 
He  was  personally  connected  with  the  first  ste^s  taken  at 
this  meeting  of  synod  and  afterwards  in  founding  the 
synod's  Orphans'  Home.  He  left  the  synod  in  1892  for 
wider  fields  of  usefulness,  and  at  the  present  time  is  the 
president  of  the  Alabama  Presbyterian  College  for  Men 
at  Anniston,  Ala. 

On  the  next  day  after  this  convention  the  synod  met, 
and  the  following  memorials  were  presented :  One  from 
the  Evangelical  Alliance  of  Wilmington,  in  regard  to  the 
State  laws  concerning  temperance;  one  from  the  Chapel 
Hill  Church,  touching  the  interests  of  Presbyterianism  at 
the  University;  one  from  the  Presbyterian  Lady  Man- 
agers of  the  "  Home  and  Hospital"  in  Charlotte,  N.  C. 
This  memorial  was  referred  to  a  commission  of  which 
the  Rev.  J.  Rumple,  D.  D.^  was  made  chairman,  on  the, 
adoption  of  the  following  resolution  offered  by  Rev.  W. 
E.  Mclllwaine : 

''Resolved,  That  in  the  judgment  of  this  synod  the 
time  has  come  to  take  steps  looking  to  the  establishing  of 
an  orphans'  home  within  our  bounds,  and  that  a  commis- 
sion be  appointed  to  take  the  whole  matter  in  charge, 
to  consider  and  execute  whatever  may  seem  wise  and 
practicable  in  putting  such  an  enterprise  on  a  permanent 
basis." 

Thus  it  will  be  seen  that  the  great  enterprise  of  the 
Orphans'  Home,  now  the  joy  and  piide  of  the  synod, 
was  launched  at  this  meeting. 


REV.  W.   E.  M'lLWAiN,   D.   D. 


In  North  Carolina.  59 

The  two  other  memorials  presented  related  to  the  burn- 
ing and  vital  questions  which  had  burdened  the  minds 
and  hearts  of  some  of  the  brethren  for  so  many  years — 
"  How  shall  we  overtake  the  destitutions  of  our  State  ?" 
One  of  these  memorials  was  from  Orange  Presbytery, 
and  the  other  one  was  from  the  Synodical  Convention, 
and  it  is  noted  that  both  these  memorials  embodied  the 
same  thought,  looking  to  the  division  of  territory. 

The  memorial  from  Orange  Presbytery  had  its  origin 
at  the  spring  meeting  of  Presbytery,  six  months  before 
the  convention,  and  the  meeting  of  synod,  when  a  com- 
mittee of  three — Dr.  Johnston,  Dr.  Sprunt  and  Mr.  W.  S. 
Primrose — w-ere  appointed  to  draft  said  memorial  to  the 
synod.  It  was  presented  to  the  Presbytery  at  the  fall 
meeting  by  the  Rev.  Dr.  Johnston  and  adopted.  This 
Presbytery  had  felt  for  many  years  its  deep  responsibility, 
and  its  utter  inability  to  overtake  its  destitutions,  owing 
to  its  vast  unoccupied  territory,  and  much  time  and  labor 
were  spent  at  each  meeting  of  Presbytery  in  discussing 
these  matters.  The  Rev.  Dr.  Johnston  had  been  elected, 
and  was  now  serving  as  general  evangelist  for  the  Pres- 
bytery, and  he,  with  others,  w^as  thoroughly  convinced 
that  old  Orange  ought  to  be  divided,  and  that  in  some 
way  the  synod  ought  to  share  the  responsibility  in  sup- 
plying the  needs. 

The  follow'ing  is  the  memorial  from  Orange  Presby- 
tery : 

''  The  Presbytery  of  Orange  respectfully  memoralize 
the  Synod  of  North  Carolina  to  take  into  consideration 
the  subjoined  statement  of  the  extent  and  present  need 
of  the  evangelistic  field  within  the  bounds  of  the  Presby- 
tery, and  to  take  such  action  as  its  wisdom  may  suggest 
for  the  assistance  and  relief  of  the  Presbytery  in  the 
prosecution  of  this  great  work: 


6o  The  Presbyterian  Church 

"i.  The  Presbytery  of  Orange,  the  oldest  existing  Pres- 
bytery south  of  the  Potomac,  and  mother  of  all  the  Pres- 
byteries which  now  compose  this  synod,  is  in  territorial 
extent  nearly  as  large  as  all  the  others  combined.  It  em- 
braces about  one-half  the  population  of  the  State — not 
far  from  700,000  souls,  482,000,  or  nearly  two-thirds, 
being  white.  There  are  44  counties  and  parts  of  coun- 
ties in  the  Presbytery,  in  20  of  which  there  is  not  a 
single  organized  church  of  our  faith  and  order.  With 
three  exceptions^  these  counties  are  massed  together  in 
the  eastern  part  of  the  Presbytery,  between  the  Atlantic 
Coast  Line  Railway  and  the  Ocean.  The  Presbytery  thus 
presents  to  view  a  territory  about  evenly  divided  by  the 
railway  mentioned,  one-half  of  which,  as  to  Presbyterian- 
ism,  is  missionary  ground ;  and  this  ground,  occupied  by 
our  church,  is  nearly,  if  not  quite,  two-thirds  of  the  en- 
tire missionary  field  of  the  synod — ^that  is  to  say,  Orange 
Presbytery  has  twice  as  large  an  evangelistic  field  for  her 
share  of  labor  as  the  other  four  Presbyteries  together 
have.  This  disproportion  in  the  extent  in  their  respective 
fields  of  Home  Mission  labor  and  enterprise,  is  felt, 
justly,  as  we  believe,  to  be  a  burden  far  beyond  her 
strength  by  the  mother  Presbytery;  and  this  synod,  the 
only  court  which  has,  according  to  the  constitution  of  the 
church,  authority  to  determine  the  metes  and  bounds  of 
the  Presbyteries  within  her  bounds,  is  respectfully  asked 
to  consider  this  matter,  and,  if  it  be  possible,  to  equalize 
the  shares  of  the  Presbyteries  respectively  in,  the  work  of 
Home  Evangelization. 

''2.  The  Presbytery  is  moved  at  this  time  specially  to 
present  this  appeal  to  the  synod  for  the  reason  it  has  for 
believing  its  large  unoccupied  field  to  be  one  which  in- 
vites a  far  more  extensive  planting  of  our  church  than 
it  is  possible  for  the  Presbytery  to  accomplish  with  the 


In  North  Carolina.  6i 

resources  at  its  command.  Recent  special  exploration  of 
the  eastern  district  of  the  Presbytery  has  shown  open 
doors  which  should  be  entered  at  once,  and  would  be,  if  it 
were  in  the  power  of  the  Presbytery.  It  has  done  some- 
thing in  this  region  in  the  last  fifteen  years.  Half  a 
dozen  churches  have  been  organized  at  promising  points, 
one  of  which  is  already  self-supporting,  and  two  or  three 
new  fields  of  hopeful  labor  are  at  this  moment  being 
entered  in  counties  which,  until  lately,  had  not  heard  the 
voice  of  a  Presbyterian  preacher.  But  other  fields  also 
remain  to  be  occupied,  and  will  remain  thus,  because  of 
the  sheer  inability  of  the  Presbytery  to  occupy.  It  has 
reached  apparently  the  limit  of  its  strength  in  keeping  as 
it  does  now  four  or  five  evangelists  in  the  field,  and  yet 
four  or  five  more  are  sorely  needed,  if  the  Presbytery  is 
to  keep  apace  with  the  widening  area  of  labor.  The 
Presbytery  therefore  earnestly  desires  that  the  synod  give 
this  subject  the  consideration  to  which  it  seems  to  be  en- 
titled, and,  in  its  wisdom,  suggest  or  initiate  some  mode 
of  procedure  which  may  relieve  the  Presbytery  in  the 
present  emergency.  Whether  it  shall  be  by  a  readjust- 
ment of  the  boundaries  which  define  the  existing  Presby- 
teries, or  by  the  erection  of  a  new  Presbytery,  or  by  a 
scheme  of  synodical  evangelistic  labor,  or  by  a  co^nsensus 
of  the  Presbyteries,  by  which  a  practical  co-operation  in 
the  work  may  be  secured ;  whether  by  any  one,  or  by  all 
these,  or  by  any  other  feasible  method,  the  Presbytery 
does  not  venture  to  say;  but  it  does  desire,  and  it  hopes, 
that  some  way  may  be  found  for  removing  the  dispropor- 
tionate and  unequal  burdens  of  the  Presbyteries,  and  so 
far  the  more  effective  prosecution  of  the  great  work  of 
State  evangelization. 

(Signed)  F.  H.  Johnston,  Stated  Clerk/' 


62  The  Presbyterian  Church 

On  the  same  day,  immediately  after  the  noon  recess, 
the  memorial  from  the  Synodical  Convention  was  pre- 
sented as  follows : 

"  The  committee  appointed  by  the  convention  lately 
held  in  this  city,  in  the  interests  of  Home  Missions,  re- 
spectfully memoralize  the  synod  to  take  suitable  action  in 
regard  to  the  following  matters: 

''I.  That  a  committee  be  appointed  to  thoroughly  con- 
sider the  question  of  the  more  equal  division  of  the  terri- 
tory of  synod  among  the  Presbyteries,  to  report  at  the 
next  meeting  of  synod,  and  to  publish  their  report  in  the 
''  North  Carolina  Presbyterian"  at  least  two  months  be- 
fore said  meeting  of  synod. 

"2.  In  order  to  bring  the  subject  of  Home  Missions 
prominently  before  the  synod,  to  make  a  standing  order 
to  consider  the  subject  embracing  the  causes  of  Susten- 
tation  and  evangelistic  work,  at  11  o'clock  A.  M.  on  the 
second  day  of  its  sessions,  and  to  give  this  subject  prefer- 
ence over  all  other  subjects. 

"3.  We  also  memoralize  the  synod  to  take  the  neces- 
sary steps  at  its  present  meeting  to  place  at  least  one 
evangelist  in  its  missionary  field." 

The  first  and  second  sections  of  this  memorial  w^ere 
placed  upon  the  docket,  and  the  third  section,  which  in- 
volved the  very  heart  of  the  matters  at  issue,  was  referred 
to  a  special  committee,  consisting  of  the  Rev.  Messrs.  J. 
W.  Primrose,  P.  H.  Hoge,  Alexander  Sprunt,  H.  G.  Hill, 
J.  M.  Wharey  and  W.  E.  Mclllwaine. 

This  was  a  strong  committee  of  representative  men, 
each  Presbytery  being  represented,  with  Dr.  Primrose 
as  chairman,  and  on  the  morning  of  the  next  day — Octo- 
ber 26,  1888 — ^the  following  report  was  submitted  to 
svnod : 


In  North  Carolina.  63 

"  Your  committee  appointed  to  take  into  consideration 
and  to  report  suitable  action  on  the  memorial  of  the  Con- 
vention of  Home  Missions,  touching  the  placing  of  at 
least  one  evangelist  in  the  mission  field  of  the  synod,  beg 
leave  to  report  the  following  action  for  synod's  adoption : 

"i.  That  synod  grants  the  petition  of  the  memorialists 
and  agrees  to  place  at  least  one  evangelist  in  the  field. 

"2.  That  a  committee  be  appointed,  with  instructions, 
if  the  way  be  clear  as  to  support,  to  select  such  evangelist 
or  evangelists,  to  fix  his  salary  and  direct  his  labors  until 
the  next  meeting  of  synod. 

''3.  While  laboring  within  the  bounds  of  any  Presby- 
tery he  shall  be  under  the  direction  of  the  Home  Mission 
Committee  of  that  Presbytery. 

''4.  His  powers  within  the  bounds  of  any  Presbytery, 
with  reference  to  the  reception  of  members,  organizing 
churches,  ordaining  and  installing  elders  and  deacons, 
shall  be  only  such  as  are  conferred  upon  him  by  said 
Presbytery. 

(Signed)  "J.  W.  Primrose,  Chainnan" 

A  battle  royal  was  now  on.  The  infant  which  had  been 
born  in  1881,  and  which  had  been  asleep  and  gaining 
strength,  had  now  awakened  with  increased  strength,  and 
almost  matured  vigor,  and  was  demanding  its  right  to 
exercise  its  powers.  The  same  old  questions  of  the  con- 
stitutionality of  synodical  evangelists,  the  right  of  the 
synod  to  elect  evangelists,  and  to  elect  evangelistic  com- 
mittees with  powxrs  to  act,  had  to  be  met,  and  they  were 
met  in  a  masterly  debate.  The  opposition  was  strong, 
and  the  end  of  the  conflict  was  not  to  be  seen  until  1891, 
but,  for  the  present,  the  battle  was  fought  and  the  vic- 
tory was  won. 

No  one  who  was  present  at  this  meeting  of  synod  will 


64  The  Presbyterian  Church 

ever  forget  the  masterly  speeches  delivered  by  many  of 
the  brethren  who  participated  in  the  debate,  especially  the 
notable  speech  delivered  by  the  Rev.  Dr.  B.  F.  Marable. 
At  this  late  date  it  would  be  impossible  to  give  a  synop- 
sis, or  even  an  adequate  description,  of  that  wonderful 
speech.  It  was  full  of  wit,  humor,  pathos  and  sarcasm, 
and  it  bristled  with  illustrations,  ludicrous  and  otherwise, 
and  it  was  delivered  with  rare  eloquence  and  telling 
power.  It  came  spontaneously  from  a  massive  brain  and 
a  big  heart,  overjoyed  at  the  prospect  of  synodical  mis- 
sions becoming  a  reality,  and  it  made  a  profound  impres- 
sion. 

Dr.  ■Marable  was  no  ordinary  man.  He  was  notably 
an  independent  and  original  thinker,  and  possessed  the 
power  of  concentrating  his  thought  upon  a  subject  in  a 
remarkable  manner,  and  of  reaching  conclusions  step  by 
step  through  ^  masterful  power  of  analysis,  which,  when 
the  conclusion  was  reached  and  the  thought  projected, 
seldom  failed  to  convince  his  hearers.  Some  one,  writing 
of  him  after  his  death,  said :  "  Dr.  Marable  added  to  his 
analytical  and  logical  powers  a  loftiness  of  conception 
that  came  from  a  lofty  soul,  and  that  lent  a  glow  of  fire  to 
all  that  he  said.  He  was  not  only  a  man  of  great  intellect, 
but  a  man  of  great  heart,  and  the  heart  warmed  the 
speech  that  the  intellect  created.  He  thought  great 
thoughts  about  God  and  eternity,  about  sin  and  retribu- 
tion, about  grace  and  redemption,  but  these  great  thoughts 
were  not  the  speculations  of  the  mind,  nor  the  imagina- 
tions of  fancy,  but  the  teachings  of  the  Holy  Spirit  to  a 
soul  that  was  truly  humble,  because  its  thoughts  and 
aspirations  were  turned  upward  to  that  which  was  greater 
than  itself.  He  received  the  things  of  God  with  the  faith 
of  a  little  child.  And  while  his  intellect  cut  through  the 
shallow  sophistries  that  were  urged  against  Divine  truth 


In  North  Carolina.  65 

and  revelation,  yet  when  it  came  to  that  which  was  above 
the  grasp  of  human  comprehension,  he  simply  wondered 
and  adored."  He  became  a  Presbyterian  from  the  Baptist 
Church  in  1864,  and  it  is  said  that  the  change  wrought 
in  his  views  was  the  result  of  a  long  and  painful  struggle, 
and  having  reached  conclusions  satisfactory  to  himself, 
he  was  always  tolerant  to  those  who  differed  with  him, 
and  he  supported  the  principles  he  avowed  most  manfully 
unto  the  end.  He  calmly  and  painlessly  passed  to  his 
reward  on  April  14,  1892. 

After  the  adoption  of  the  report  of  the  Committee  on 
the  Memorial  of  the  Convention  the  following  evangelistic 
committee,  provided  for  in  the  report  and  to  serve  as  a 
special  committee  for  one  year,  was  then  appointed — viz. : 
Rev.  Messrs.  J.  W.  Primrose  (chairman),  Alexander 
Sprunt,  R.  B.  Anderson,  H.  G.  Hill,  P.  H.  Hoge,  W.  E. 
Mclllwaine,  and  Elders  A.  M.  Scales,  M.  W.  Hill,  J.  W. 
McNeill,  B.  F.  Hall  and  Rufus  Barringer. 

The  memorial  from  Orange  Presbytery  was  referred 
to  this  committee  to  report  at  the  next  meeting  of  synod. 

Thus  ended,  so  far  as  synodical  missions  were  con- 
cerned, the  most  notable  meeting  of  synod  perhaps,  ever 
held  in  the  history  of  the  church.  The  great  question, 
''How  shall  we  overtake  our  destitutions?"  which  had 
been  discussed  so  long,  had  now  culminated  into  a  definite 
plan  and  purpose,  and  the  great  Synodical  Movement  or 
"effort,"  which  hadi  been  paralyzed  and  slumbering  for 
a  number  of  years,  had  now  become  a  reality  and  had  be- 
gun its  career,  to  move  onward  and  upward  for  the  glory 
of  God  and  the  salvation  of  multitudes  in  the  old  North 
State. 

But  it  now  remained  to  put  the  work  into  practical 
operation,  and  to  place  the  whole  scheme  upon  a  perma- 
nent basis.   This  necessarily  would  require  time  and  labor, 


66  The  Presbyterian  Church 

as  well  as  the  profound  study  and  wisdom  of  the  com- 
mittee charged  with  this  most  important  duty. 

One  of  the  leading  and  active  members  of  synod  at  this 
time,  and  until  he  left  the  synod  in  1899,  especially  per- 
taining to  all  matters  connected  with  Home  Missions, 
was  the  Rev.  P.  H.  Hoge,  D.  D.  Soon  after  the  meeting 
in  Goldsboro  the  special  Evangelistic  Committee  met  in 
Raleigh.  Dr.  Hoge  was  made  the  secretary  of  the  com- 
mittee, and  continued  to  be  after  the  committee  became 
permanent,  and  it  devolved  upon  him  to  conduct  an  ex- 
tensive correspondence  and  to  decide  many  matters  of 
importance. 

The  memorial  of  Orange  Presbytery  had  been  carefully 
studied  in  connection  with  the  distribution  of  territory, 
and  at  this  meeting  of  the  committee  in  Raleigh,  Dr. 
Hoge  proposed  an  overture  to  the  synod  to  erect  two  new 
Presbyteries,  to  be  named  Raleigh  and  Asheville.  The 
Mecklenburg  members  did  not  think  the  time  had  come 
for  the  formation  of  Asheville  Presbytery,  but  the  other 
new  Presbytery  was  agreed  upon,  and  was  formed  by  the 
next  synod,  and  named  ''Albemarle."  At  this  meeting  of 
the  committee  Dr.  Hoge  strongly  advocated  the  election 
of  the  Rev.  W.  D.  Morton  as  synodical  evangelist,  which 
afterwards  resulted  in  his  election.  Owing  to  the  illness 
of  Dr.  Primrose,  chairman  of  the  committee,  Dr.  Hoge 
prepared  and  presented  to  the  synod  of  1889  at  Char- 
lotte the  report  of  the  committee,  outlining  the  plan  of 
future  work  and  recommending  that  the  committee  be 
made  a  permanent  organization.  He  also  prepared  for 
the  synod  of  1891  an  elaborate  report  on  the  future 
"Work,  Policy  and  Organization"  of  the  Synodical  Home 
Mission  Committee. 

It  w^ill  be  noted  in  the  minutes  of  the  synod  that  each 
of  the  first  three  articles  of  that  report  was  adopted  on 


RtV.   P.   H.   HOGE,   D.   D. 


In  North  Carolixa.  ^^j 

a  different  day.  Between  the  lines  of  that  fact  is  to  be 
read  the  unrecorded  history  of  a  great  debate,  in  which 
the  whole  policy  and  plan  of  the  committee  was  assailed 
and  sternly  fought  by  a  strong  but  small  minority  of  the 
synod.  It  largely  devolved  upon  Dr.  Hoge  to  defend  the 
report  before  the  synod,  and  as  a  result  of  the  debate  the 
policy  of  the  committee  was  sustained  by  an  overwhelm- 
ing majority. 

The  first  article  of  that  report  was  as  follows : 

"  Synod  recognizes  that  upon  it  and  its  Presbyteries  is 
laid  the  responsibility  for  the  evangelization  of  its  terri- 
tory, so  far  as  it  can  be  done  by  the  Presbyterian  Church 
in  the  United  States,  and  in  humble  reliance  upon  the 
Head  of  the  Church  receives  this  trust  from  His  hand 
and  pledges  itself  to  its  faithful  prosecution." 

The  adoption  of  this  article  firmly  nailed  to  the  mast- 
head the  purpose  of  the  synod  to  evangelize  its  territory 
without  outside  aid.  When  the  General  Assembly  con- 
sidered the  reorganization  of  its  plan  of  Home  Mission 
work,  Dr.  Hoge  was  sent  by  the  committee  to  the  Assem- 
bly at  Macon,  Ga.,  in  1893,  to  present  the  North  Carolina 
plan  before  the  Standing  Committee  of  the  Assembly; 
and  although  the  Assembly's  Special  Committee  presented 
a  different  plan,  the  Standing  Committee  recommended 
the  North  Carolina  plan  to  the  Assembly,  and  by  the 
courtesy  of  that  body  Dr.  Hoge  was  heard  in  explanation 
of  the  plan.  It  was  adopted  by  the  Assembly,  and  remains 
the  essential  policy  of  Home  Mission  work  in  the  South- 
ern Presbyterian  Church  to  this  day.  Again,  in  1885,  a 
Presbytery  in  Virginia  overtured  the  Assembly  to  revert 
to  the  old  plan  of  conducting  Home  Mission  work.  Dr 
Hoge  was  a  member  of  that  Assembly,  and  was  made 
chairman  of  the  Standing  Committee  on  Home  Missions, 


6S  The  Presbyterian  Church 

and  both  the  committee  and  the  Assembly  again  sustained 
the  North  Carolina  plan,  which  remains  the  plan  of  the 
Assembly  to  the  present  day. 

In  1889,  at  Charlotte,  N.  C,  the  Special  Evangelistic 
Committee  reported  to  synod  the  election  of  the  Rev.  W. 
D.  Morton,  D.  D.,  as  the  first  synodical  evangelist  in 
North  Carolina,  and  that  he  had  entered  uf>on  his  work 
June  7,  1889.  This  was  a  happy  selection — one  that  gave 
universal  satisfaction — and  was  crowned  with  wonderful 
success.  Dr.  ]\Iorton  himself  made  a  report  of  his  labors, 
which  thrilled  the  synod,  and  w^as  received  with  profound 
gratitude.  He  showed  that  from  June  the  7th  to  October 
the  7th,  a  period  of  exactly  four  months,,  he  had  visited 
130  families,  held  200  services,  witnessed  114  confessions 
and  renewals,  added  to  the  church  82  persons,  baptized 
17  adults  and  17  infants,  ordained  i  elder  and  i  deacon, 
and  had  collected  $189  for  the  work.  This  report  made  a 
profound  impression,  and  Dr.  IMorton  was  commended 
to  the  people  for  their  support,  by  their  contributions  and 
their  prayers. 

The  plan  submitted  by  the  committee  for  re-districting 
the  whole  territory,  after  a  few  changes,  was  adopted. 
By  this  plan  the  Presbytery  of  Albemarle  was  formed, 
and  its  first  meeting  was  held  in  Goldsboro,  N.  C, 
November  20,  1889. 

The  plan  for  the  permanent  conduct  and  support  of  the 
work  was  adopted — namely :  "That  a  permanent  commit- 
tee on  synodical  evangelization  be  constituted,  the  chair- 
man of  which  shall  be  the  synod's  agent  of  Evangelistic 
Labor,  and  which  shall  be  composed  of  the  chairmen  of 
the  Committee  of  Home  Missions  from  each  Presbytery, 
and  one  ruling  elder  from  each  Presbytery."  For  the 
support  of  the  work  it  was  recommended  that  a  certain 
amount  of  money  be  apportioned  to  the  Presbyteries  an- 


In  North  Carolina.  69 

nually,  to  be  raised  quarterly,  and  that  an  annual  collec- 
tion be  taken  by  all  the  churches  for  the  cause. 

Under  this  plan  the  Rev.  Alexander  Sprunt,  D.  D., 
was  elected  agent  of  Evangelistic  Labor,  and  he  was 
therefore  chairman  of  the  committee,  and  the  committee 
thus  constituted  was  composed  of  the  foUovv-ing  members : 
Rev.  Messrs.  Alexander  Sprunt  (chairman),  D.  I.  Craig, 
C.A.  Munroe,  H.G.  Hill,  P.  H.  Hoge,  W.  E.  Mclllwaine, 
and  Elders  Hon.  A.  M.  Scales,  I.  H.  Foust,  Dr.  J.  W. 
McNeill,  B.  F.  Hall,  Gen.  R.  Barringer  and  Samuel 
Watkins. 

The  work  of  the  Special  Evangelistic  Committee  ap- 
pointed at  Goldsboro  was  now  completed,  and  the  com- 
mittee did  their  work  wisely  and  well — all  honor  to  them ! 

The  great  cause  of  Synodical  Home  Missions  was  now 
fully  inaugurated,  and  having  arisen  to  a  permanent 
position  in  the  economy  of  the  church,  we  will  attempt  in 
the  future  pages  of  this  book  to  trace  its  development 
and  progress. 


CHAPTFR   VI. 

The  Progress  of  Synodical  Home  Missions  in  North 
Carolina,  and  the  Men  of  the  Times. 

In  the  Book  of  Wisdom  it  is  written :  "  There  is  a 
time  for  every  purpose  under  the  heaven."  God  has  His 
purpose,  and  His  own  time  for  every  purpose;  and  not 
only  so,  but  He  has  the  right  men  in  the  right  place,  and 
at  the  right  time,  to  meet  every  purpose.  The  eyes  of  the 
Synod  of  North  Carolina  at  Wilmington  in  1900  were 
turned  toward  the  Rev.  Egbert  W.  Smith,  D.  D.,  Rev. 
W.  D.  Morton,  D.  D.,  Rev.  Alexander  Sprunt,  D.  D.,  and 
others,  as  the  right  men  who  had  appeared  upon  the  scene 
of  action  at  the  right  time.  The  efforts  of  the  church  had 
been  crowned  with  wonderful  success,  and  this  meeting 
was  characterized  by  intense  enthusiasm.  It  will  be 
remembered  by  the  eloquent  and  stirring  addresses  made 
by  these  brethren  and  others,  which  were  followed  by  the 
raising  of  nearly  $2,000  on  the  floor  of  the  synod  for  the 
cause  of  Synodical  Home  Missions !  The  synod  sang  the 
long-metre  doxology  in  grateful  acknowledgment  to  God 
for  His  rich  blessing. 

On  motion  of  Dr.  Alorton  the  Rev.  E.  W.  Smith,  D. 
D.,  was  immediately  and  unanimously  elected  General 
Synodical  Evangelist,  in  addition  to  Dr.  Morton.  The 
Rev.  Dr.  Sprunt  was  re-elected  agent  of  Evangelistic 
Labor  and  chairman  of  the  committee. 

The  report  showed  that  there  had  been  eight  Presby- 
terial  evangelists  in  the  field  during  the  past  year,  and 
cheering  reports  came  from  all  parts  of  the  synod.   There 


In  North  Carolina.  71 

was  much  cause  for  thankfulness,  and  in  the  Address  to 
the  Churches,  written  by  the  Rev.  Jacob  Henry  Smith, 
D.  D.,  it  was  said :  ''  We  think  that  the  present  meeting 
of  synod  will  be  admitted  to  be  one  of  the  best  and  most 
encouraging  ever  held,  and  that  it  will  mark  an  era  in  our 
North  Carolina  Church  for  progress  and  blessing  in  the 
matter  of  spreading  the  Gospel  at  home  and  abroad." 

It  was  indeed  a  great  meeting,  but  we  must  remember, 
however,  that  at  this  time  there  were  96  counties  in  the 
State,  and  a  population  of  more  than  a  milion  and  a  half, 
and  in  2y  of  these  counties  there  was  no  Presbyterian 
church,  and  in  19  of  them  only  one  church  each,  making 
46  counties  and  a  vast  population  almost  entirely  without 
the  influence  of  the  Presbyterian  Church.  The  number 
of  Presbyterian  communicants  in  the  State  at  this  time 
was  something  more  than  26,000,  and  the  contributions 
to  Systematic  Beneficence  was  nearly  $56,000 — a  gain 
of  $13,000  over  the  last  year. 

Soon  after  this  meeting  the  committee  met  in  Greens- 
boro, November  25,  1890,  to  determine  the  work  of  Dr. 
Smith  as  General  Evangelist.  It  was  decided  that  his 
especial  work  should  be  the  raising  of  funds  for  placing 
more  laborers  in  the  field. 

The  committee  met  again  in  Greensboro  February  3, 
1891,  and  Dr.  Smith  reported  a  subscription  of  $2,000 
secured  for  the  work.  On  the  basis  of  this  subscription 
it  was  agreed  to  elect  one  other  general  evangelist,  and 
that  further  elections  should  be  local  or  district  evange- 
lists. The  Rev.  W.  E.  Mclllwaine  was  elected  general 
evangelist,  and  the  Rev.  John  C.  McMullen  was  elected 
district  evangelist,  and  subsequently  the  Rev.  R.  P.  Pell 
was  added  to  the  force  as  district  evangelist. 

At  this  meeting  of  the  committee,  also,  the  Rev.  Dr. 
Morton  gave  notice  that  he  would  retire  from  the  work 


^2  The  Presbyterian  Church 

some  time  during  the  year,  and  the  Rev.  John  M.  Rose, 
D.  D.,  was  elected  general  evangelist  to  take  Dr.  Morton's 
place  when  he  retired.  The  committee  met  again  in 
Fayetteville  June  26,  1890,  Dr.  Smith  having  given  notice 
of  his  resignation,  owing  to  an  affection  of  his  throat. 
The  committee  declined  to  accept  Dr.  Smith's  resignation, 
but  granted  him  a  vacation  of  six  months  with  the  earnest 
hope  that  his  strength  might  be  regained  and  that  his 
almost  marvellous  success  in  the  work  of  raising  funds 
might  be  continued. 

In  order  that  the  w^ork  might  not  suffer  in  the  mean- 
time, the  Rev.  Alexander  Sprunt,  D.  D,,  was  elected,  for 
all  his  time,  to  take  Dr.  Smith's  place,,  to  superintend 
the  work  and  act  as  secretary,  treasurer  and  evangelist. 
The  Rev.  Dr.  Smith,  however,  resumed  his  special  work 
before  the  meeting  of  the  next  synod,  and  his  efforts  were 
crowned  with  great  success. 

Thus  it  vvill  be  seen  that  the  committee  had  been  very 
active  and  faithful,  and  had  made  many  very  important 
moves  since  the  last  meeting  of  synod.  When  the  synod 
met  at  Durham  in  1891  a  full  report  was  made;  and,  as 
already  stated,  an  elaborate  report  on  the  "  Work,  Policy 
and  Organization"  of  the  great  ''Movement"  was  sub- 
mitted to  synod  and  adopted,  and  it  remains  essentially 
the  same  until  this  day,  as  well  as  being  the  plan  and 
policy  adopted  by  the  General  Assembly. 

The  committee  was  authorized  "for  the  ensuing  year" 
to  set  apart  a  financial  agent,  w4iose  w^hole  time  might  be 
devoted  to  the  work  of  laying  the  cause  upon  the  hearts 
and  consciences  of  the  people,  in  order  that  local  evange- 
lists might  be  multiplied.  This  office  of  financial  agent 
was  in  its  nature  temporary,  and  was  due  to  the  desire  to 
retain  the  service  and  utilize  the  gifts  of  both  Dr.  Smith 
and  Dr.  Sprunt.    During  the  year  this  office  was  merged 


In  North  Carolina.  73 

into  that  of  superintendent,  which  has  remained  perma- 
nent, and  which  was  constituted  at  this  meeting  by  the 
following  article: 

"The  offices  of  agent  of  Sustentation  and  agent  of 
Evangelistic  Labor  shall  be  discontinued,  and  synod  shall 
annually  elect  a  superintendent  of  Synodical  Missions, 
who  shall  be  ex-officio  chairman,  secretary  and  treasurer 
of  the  Synodical  Committee." 

The  duties  of  this  office  were  clearly  set  forth  and 
defined  in  the  report,  and  the  Rev.  Alexander  Sprunt, 
D.  D.,  was  unanimously  elected  the  first  superintendent. 

The  committee,  as  now  constituted,  was  composed  of 
the  following  persons:  Rev.  A.  Sprunt,  D.  D.,  superin- 
tendent; Rev.  E.  W.  Smith,  D.  D.,  financial  agent;  Rev. 
D.  I.  Craig,  Rev.  C.  A.  Munroe,  Rev.  H.  G.  Hill,  D.  D., 
Rev.  P.  H.  Hoge,  D.  D.,  Rev.  W.  E.  Mclllwaine,  D.  D., 
Rev.  W.  D.  Morton,  D.  D.,  and  Eiders  J.  M.  Rogers,  J. 
G.  Hall,  Dr.  J.  W.  McNeill,  B.  F.  Hall,  John  E.  Gates 
and  J.  R.  Young. 

In  October  of  this  year  (1891)  the  Rev.  Dr.  Morton 
and  his  assistant,  the  Rev.  C.  W.  Maxwell,  retired  from 
the  work,  and  soon  after  the  Rev.  John  C.  McMulldn 
retired  from  the  work.  Mr.  McMulUen  was  a  pioneer 
evangelist  in  the  eastern  territory  of  the  State  for  nearly 
a  year.  He  was  a  faithful  and  untiring  worker,  and  did 
a  splendid  work  in  a  short  time,  in  laying  the  foundations 
and  preparing  the  way  for  others  who  were  to  follow  him. 
Mr.  Maxwell,  for  eight  months,  was  the  faithful  assistant 
of  Dr.  Morton,  and  for  some  time  after  Dr.  Morton  re- 
tired from  the  field  he  continued  in  the  Home  Mission 
work.  It  was  his  custom  to  be  on  the  ground,  where  a 
meeting  was  to  be  held,  at  least  a  week  a'head  of  Dr. 
Morton,  and  by  his  daily  services  and  faithful  visiting 


74  The  Presbyterian  Church 

and  general  activity  the  people  were  prepared  for  a  great 
meeting.  Tlie  results  of  the  labors  of  such  men  as  Messrs. 
McMullen  and  Maxwell  and  others  who  go  before  and 
prepare  the  Avay  can  never  be  tabulated,  but  they  are  very 
great  and  of  a  lasting  character,  and  to  such  men  the 
church  should  ever  be  grateful. 

The  work  of  the  Rev.  W.  D.  Morton,  D.  D.,  as  the 
first  synodical  evangelist  in  North  Carolina,  cannot  be 
estimated.  He  came  to  the  synod  just  at  the  right  time, 
and  seems  to  have  been  specially  fitted  for  the  work.  His 
high  standing  as  a  minister  of  the  Gospel,  his  dignity  of 
manner  and  scholarly  attainments,  his  zeal  for  the  cause 
of  the  IMaster,  his  faithful  and  effective  preaching,  and 
his  large  experience  in  mission  work  gave  to  the  work  in 
North  Carolina  a  standing  and  an  impetus  which  were 
very  necessary  in  the  beginning,  and  upon  which  so  much, 
depended  in  the  future.  Dr.  ]\Iorton  was  called  to  North 
Carolina  from  the  synod  of  Missouri,  but  previously  he 
had  been  a  synodical  evangelist  in  the  Synod  of  Kentucky, 
and  was  really  one  of  the  founders  of  the  great  synodical 
movement  in  that  State.  In  a  published  account  of  the 
meeting  of  the  Synod  of  Kentucky  in  1881,  it  was  said 
''the  most  important  and  intensely  interesting  business 
that  came  before  the  synodi  was  introduced  by  the  Rev. 
W.  D.  Morton."  He  had  collected  facts  and  statistics, 
and  elaborated  a  plan  of  evangelistic  work  for  the  synod, 
contemplating  its  prosecution  on  a  larger  scale  than  at 
any  previous  period.  Its  presentation  was  accompanied 
by  a  clear,  forcible,  powerful  speech,  which  enthused  the 
whole  body.  A  sense  of  the  importance  of  the  work  was 
realized  by  every  one;  but  members  were  timid  about 
undertaking  it.  Where  was  the  money  to  come  from? 
Two  gentlemen  of  Louisville  offered  to  contribute  an 
amount  equal  to  any  that  synod  would  raise,  up  to  $5,000. 


r    _ 


REV.   W.    D.    MORTON. 


In  North  Carolina.  75 

The  synod  promptly  accepted  the  offer,  and  $10,000  was 
secured.  A  plan  of  operation  was  agreed  upon,  an  execu- 
tive committee  was  appointed,  and  the  Rev.  E.  O.  Guer- 
rant  and  Rev.  W.  D.  Morton  were  unanimously  chosen  as 
synodical  evangelists  of  the  Synod  of  Kentucky." 

Dr.  Morton  faithfully  and  successfully  occupied  this 
position  for  three  years,  when  he  removed  to  Missouri. 
He  entered  upon  his  work  in  North  Carolina  October  7, 
1889,  and  retired  from  the  work  as  evangelist  October  11, 
1891.  During  that  time  he  held  1,291  services,  witnessed 
806  confessions,  and  saw  578  persons  added  to  the  Pres- 
byterian Church.  He  has  never  ceased  to  be  an  influen- 
tial factor  in  the  great  work  of  Synodical  Missions,  and 
"his  bow  still  abides  in  strength,"  and  he  enjoys  the  love 
and  esteem  of  the  brethren  and  ministers  to  a  devoted 
people  at  Rocky  Mount,  N.  C.  The  synod  is  under  last- 
ing obligations  to  him. 

During  the  year  1891  seven  churches  were  organized, 
364  persons  were  added  to  the  church,  and  the  sum  of 
$13,540  was  raised  in  cash  and  subscriptions  for  the  work. 
Of  this  amount  $10,310  was  raised  by  Dr.  Smith  within 
seven  weeks,  and  $1,700  was  raised  by  Dr.  Sprunt,  chair- 
man of  the  committee. 

In  March,  1892,  the  Rev.  W.  E.  Mclllwaine  resigned 
as  general  evangelist,  that  he  mig^ht  accept  the  responsible 
position  of  superintendent  of  Synodical  Home  Missions 
in  the  Synod  of  Alabama.  He  served  as  general  evange- 
list in  North  Carolina  most  faithfully  and  successfully 
for  ten  months,  givmg  most  of  his  time  to  IMecklenburg 
Presbytery. 

In  April,  1892,  the  Rev.  Alexander  Sprunt,  D.  D.,  re- 
signed the  office  of  superintendent,  that  he  might  accept 
a  pastorate  in  Charleston,  S.  C.  Dr.  Sprunt  was  promi- 
nently connected  with  synodical  missions  in  North  Caro- 


y6  The  Presbyterian  Church 

lina  for  a  number  of  years,  having  been  the  agent  of 
Evangehstic  Labor,  chairman  of  the  committee,  superin- 
tendent and  evangelist.  He  was  an  efficient  officer,  and 
discharged  all  his  duties  with  diligence  and  fidelity,  and 
his  labors  were  abundant  and  successful. 

Dr.  Sprunt  was  the  first  superintendent  of  Synodical 
Missions,  and  during  his  administration  a  great  deal  was 
done  toward  rendering  the  w^ork  permanent  and  self-sup- 
porting. The  work  was  carried  on  largely  by  an  execu- 
tive committee,  appointed  by  the  Synodical  Committee, 
and  this  committee  held  many  meetings  and  wisely  con- 
ducted the  work.  It  was  composed  of  Rev.  Dr.  Sprunt 
(superintendent),  Rev.  Dr.  Smith,  Rev.  Dr.  Hill,  Rev. 
Dr.  Hoge  and  Mr.  B.  F.  Hall. 

On  Dr.  Sprunt's  retiring  from  the  work,  the  Rev.  E. 
W.  Smith,  D.  D.,  was  elected  superintendent,  and  this 
office  was  now  made  to  include  the  work  of  financial 
agent,  and  this  latter  office  was  ever  afterwards  discon- 
tinued'. 

Dr.  Smith  entered  at  once  upon  the  combined  duties  of 
his  office,  and  at  this  time  the  force  in  the  field  had  been 
reduced  to  two  men,  giving  their  whole  time  to  synodical 
work,  the  Rev.  Dr.  Rose,  general  evangelist,  and  Rev. 
R.  P.  Pell,  district  evangelist.  But  before  the  close  of 
the  year  (1892)  three  local  evangelists.  Rev.  C.  Miller, 
Rev.  W.  C.  Alexander,  and  Rev.  M.  McG.  Shields,  were 
added  to  the  force,  and  Dr.  Smith  reported  $9,806  raised 
by  subscription  for  the  work,  and  that  the  spirit  of 
liberality  and  activity  seemed  to  be  widespread  and  in- 
creasing. 

At  the  close  of  the  year  1893,  the  beginning  of  the  great 
money  panic,  the  committee  said :  ''  The  Divine  blessing 
has  been  doubly  and  even  trebly  manifest ;  in  the  extraor- 
dinary liberality  with  which  individual    churches    have 


In  North  Carolina.  'J'] 

continued  to  respond  to  this  cause,  in  tlie  uniform  success 
of  the  workers,  and  the  special  outpouring  of  God's  Spirit 
upon  some  of  our  great  mission  country  fields,  where, 
until  recently  our  church  was  unknown  and  in  the  cheer- 
ing fact  that  notwithstanding  the  bitter  financial  strin- 
gency of  the  times,  your  committee  is  able  to  report  the 
$i,ooo  debt  with  which  the  year  began  paid  off  in  full, 
and  all  the  workers  paid  up  to  date."  This  year  1,300 
confessions  were  reported,  513  additions  to  the  church, 
and  $18,033  raised  in  cash  and  subscriptions  through  this 
agency  for  the  work.  During  the  year  several  new  men, 
as  local  evangelists,  were  placed  in  the  field,  among  whom 
were  the  Rev.  Messrs.  C.  W.  Maxwell,  F.  W.  Parries 
and  William  Black,  and  the  reports  from  all  the  workers 
were  of  the  most  cheering  character.  The  reports  from 
Messrs.  Pell  in  Mitchell  and  Watauga  counties.  Miller  in 
Stokes  county,  and  Black  in  Union  and  Anson  counties, 
were  almost  thrilling. 

The  fruits  of  earnest  labors  were  now  beginning  to  be 
gathered  into  an  abundant  harvest,  but  at  this  very  time 
the  work  encountered  most  serious  difficulties  and  hin- 
drances. 

On  April  15,  1893,  the  Rev.  J.  M.  Rose,  D.  D.,  laid 
down  the  work  as  general  evangelist,  after  a  faithful  ser- 
vice of  about  eighteen  months,  and  at  the  same  time 
the  Rev.  Dr.  Smith  tendered  his  resignation  as  super- 
intendent. 

Dr.  Rose  was  the  immediate  successor  of  Dr.  Morton 
as  general  evangelist,  but  the  character  of  his  work  was 
somewhat  different.  The  greater  part  of  his  time  was 
spent  in  destitute  regions,  where  there  were  scarcely  any 
Presbyterians,  and  where  Presbyterian  churches  were 
few,  feeble  and  far  apart.  His  work  was  the  more  diffi- 
cult because  it  was  almost  entirely  pioneer  work,  in  ''the 


78  The  Presbyterian  Church 

highways  and  hedges,"  and  often  going  under  the  special 
directions  of  the  superintendent,  to  remain  only  three  or 
four  days  at  a  place.  He  had  no  assistant  to  go  before 
him  and  prepare  the  way  for  a  meeting,  but  every  thing 
depended  upon  himself.  It  was  not  until  the  latter  part 
of  his  time  in  the  service  that  he  held  a  few  meetings  in 
the  stronger  churches,  where  his  preaching  was  hailed 
w^ith  joy.  Dr.  Rose,  under  the  circumstances,  did  a  won- 
derful work.  He  held  46  meetings  and  619  services  in 
22  counties  in  three  or  four  Presbyteries,  witnessed  about 
200  confessions,  and  about  160  of  \Vhom  united  with  the 
Presbyterian  Church;  organized  one  church  and  .four 
Sunday-schools;  baptized  43  adults  and  21  infants,  and 
collected  in  cash  and  subscriptions  more  than  $1,000  for 
the  work.  By  his  clear-cut,  logical,  scriptural  and  able 
presentation  of  the  truth,  made  so  plain  and  simple  that 
a  child  could  understand,  he  was  the  very  man  in  the 
weaker  fields,  and  w^here  the  people  knew  but  little  of  the 
Presbyterian  Church,  to  "strengthen  the  things  that  re- 
mained," and  in  the  new^er  fields  to  establish  the  people 
''in  the  faith  of  the  Gospel/'  as  well  as  to  lead  them  to  the 
Saviour. 

The  synod  declined  to  accept  the  resignation  of  Dr. 
Smith  as  superintendent,  which  was  offered  chiefly  on 
account  of  a  weak  throat,  but  relieved  him  of  all  field 
work,  and  empowered  the  committee  to  elect  a  superin- 
tendent when  the  time  and  occasion  seemed  propitious. 

The  synod  said :  "  In  connection  with  the  retirement 
of  Dr.  E.  W.  Smith  from  active  field  work  as  superin- 
tendent, the  synod  desires  to  place  upon  record  its  great 
appreciation  of  the  value  of  the  movement  with  which 
Dr.  Smith  has  been  so  prominently  associated,  and  their 
appreciation  of  the  labors  of  Mr.  Smith,  which  have  been 
so  self-denying  and  so  exceptionally  blessed.  We  feel  that 


In  North  Carolina.  79 

both  in  the  past  usefulness  and  future  promise,  there  has 
rarely,  if  ever,  been  a  movement  of  so  much  importance 
to  the  Synod  of  North  Carolina,  and  a  work  so  benefitted 
by  the  personal  work  of  Rev.  Mr.  Smith,  that  only  in 
obedience  to  his  fixed  convictions  of  duty  could  the  synod 
as:ree  to  allow  the  work  to  be  laid  down.  And,  further, 
that  we  most  tenderly  pray  for  a  blessing  upon  the  health 
and  continued  usefulness  of  the  loved  brother  mentioned 
in  this  minute." 

Dr.  Smith  continued  in  the  work  until  February  15, 
1894,  when  he  was  succeeded  by  the  Rev.  William  Black, 
who  was  elected  superintendent  by  the  committee  January 
15,  1894.  Dr.  Smith,  however,  for  several  years  after- 
wards, was  retained  on  the  General  Committee,  and  con- 
tinued to  aid  the  cause  by  his  personal  influence  and  wise 
counsel. 

It  would  be  impossible  to  estimate  the  value  of  the 
labors  of  Dr.  Smith  in  connection  with  Synodical  Home 
Missions  in  North  Carolina.  It  is  true  this  can  be  said 
of  other  men  with  equal  truth  in  the  same  connection, 
but  Dr.  Smith  did  the  work  not  only  of  an  evangelist  to 
a  considerable  extent  and  with  marked  success,  besides 
the  duties  attending  the  office  of  superintendent,  but  his 
great  work  lay  in  his  marvellous  ability  and  unprecedented 
success  in  raising  funds  for  the  support  of  the  cause. 
The  Lord  seems  to  have  especially  guided  the  synod  in 
laying  hands  upon  him  as  the  one  specially  fitted  for  the 
work — as  the  man  for  the  time,  and  at  a  time  when  it  was 
sorely  needed.  It  was  no  uncommon  thing  for  Dr.  Smith 
to  visit  a  church,  habitually  believing  itself  unable  to  sup- 
port a  pastor  for  all  of  his  time,  and,  by  his  gentle  man- 
ners, persuasive  speech  and  burning  eloquence,  raise  at 
least  one  thousand  from  that  church  for  the  support  of 
Synodical  Home  Missions ! 


8o  The  Presbyterian  Church 

The  object  was  to  place,  or  help  to  place,  evangelists  in 
every  county  in  the  State,  to  get  groups  of  churches  in 
the  way  of  self-support,  and  to  have  the  Presbyteries  to 
assume  the  support  of  the  evangelists  as  soon  as  possible. 
To  this  end  thousands  of  dollars  were  raised  by  Dr.  Smith 
alone,  not  to  speak  of  the  considerable  amounts  raised 
by  others,  and  the  people  were  stimulated  by  his  presen- 
tation of  the  cause  to  give  liberally,  and  thus  much  land 
was  possessed  and  many  souls  were  saved. 

Dr.  Smith  was  ordained  as  co-pastor  of  the  Greensboro 
Church,  with  his  honored  and  venerable  father,  Rev. 
Jacob  Henry  Smith,  D.  D.,  in  October,  1886,  and  this 
relation  continued  until  he  became  pastor  of  the  West- 
minster Church  in  Greensboro,  from  which  he  was  called 
to  the  work  of  the  synod  in  1890.  Early  in  1894  he  re- 
turned to  the  co-pastorate  with  his  father,  which  con- 
tinued until  the  death  of  his  father,  in  November,  1897. 
He  then  had  sole  charge  of  the  large  First  Chunch  of 
Greensboro,  giving  to  it  his  untiring  and  successful  labors, 
until  1906,  when  he  removed  from  the  synod  to  Louisville, 
Ky.  He  did  a  noble  w^ork  for  the  Synod  of  North  Caro- 
lina, a  w^ork  which  attracted  the  attention  of  the  whole 
Southern  Church,  and  which  placed  North  Carolina  in 
the  forefront  as  to  Home  Missions,  and  the  synod  will 
never  cease  to  owe  a  debt  of  gratitude  to  Dr.  Egbert  W. 
Smith. 

But,  notwithstanding  the  retirement  of  Dr.  Rose  and 
Dr.  Smith,  and  the  stringency  of  the  times  owing  to  the 
money  panic,  the  work  went  steadily  forward.  New 
fields  were  opened,  new  men  were  employed  and  the  con- 
tributions increased  with  the  demands  of  the  work.  A 
large  number  of  evangelists  were  now  employed  by  the 
Presbyteries  for  a  part  or  all  of  their  time,  and  aided 
in  their  support  by  the  synod's  funds.     The  synod  had 


In  North  Carolina.  8i 

very  few  local  or  district  evangelists  whom  it  supported 
entirely,  but  the  object  was  to  help  the  Presbyteries  in 
overtaking  their  destitutions  by  synodical  means.  The 
success  of  the  whole  scheme  depended  largely  upon  the 
labors  of  these  evangelists,  and  they  did,  and  are  still 
doing,  a  grand  work,  the  results  of  which  cannot  be 
tabulated  or  written  in  a  book  like  this. 

About  this  time,  however,  profound  attention  was 
directed  to  the  labors  of  at  least  three  of  these  local  evan- 
gelists— Messrs,  Miller,  Pell  and  Black. 

In  Alay,  1892,  the  Rev.  Cornelius  Miller  began  his 
work  as  synod's  local  evangelist  in  Stokes  county.  At 
that  time  there  was  no  Presbyterian  church  and  no  Pres- 
byterians with  which  to  form  a  church  in  the  county.  In 
the  long  ago  there  were  one  or  two  feeble  Presbyterian 
organizations  in  this  county,  one  at  Sandy  Ridge  and  one 
at  Snow  Creek,  but  not  a  vestige  of  them  now  remained. 
The  first  point  at  which  Mr.  Miller  began  to  preach  was 
at  a  school  house  in  the  northwest  part  of  the  county,  near 
the  residence  of  Mr.  Robert  W.  George,  one  of  the 
wealthiest  farmers  and  one  of  the  most  influential  men 
of  the  county,  and  at  that  time  Mr.  George  was  not  a 
professor  of  religion.  In  the  summer  of  1892,  Mr. 
Miller  began  operations  to  build  a  church  at  this  point, 
Mr.  George  subscribed  liberally,  and  with  some  help  from 
the  neighborhood  and  from  kind  friends  in  Winston  and 
elsewhere,  the  church  was  built,  and  on  May  28,  1893,  the 
building  was  dedicated  to  the  worship  of  God  by  the 
Rev.  D.  I.  Craig.  A  vast  crowd  was  present,  almost  ex- 
clusively of  the  Primitive  Baptist  "persuasion,''  the  only 
Presbyterians  being  present  were  the  two  preachers, 
Messrs.  IMiller  and  Craig,  and  an  old  gentleman  by  the 
name  of  Hines,  who  was  a  wandering  tailor  stopping  in 
the  neighborhood.     In  the  following  summer  two  young 


82  The  Presbyterian  Church 

men,  Messrs.  W.  K.  Forsyth  and  E.  E.  Gillespie,  semi- 
nary students,  assisted  Mr.  Miller  and  organized  a  Sun- 
day-school, with  Mr.  Gillespie  as  superintendent.  This 
was  probably  the  first  Sunday-school  ever  known  or 
conducted  in  that  community.  Miss  Mamie  McMillan 
and  Miss  Eleanor  Coble,  who  were  teachers  of  the  public 
schools  of  the  neighborhood,  greatly  assisted  in  the  Sun- 
day-school, and  did  missionary  work.  In  July,  1893,  the 
Rev.  William  Black  assisted  Mr.  Miller  in  a  meeting,  with 
blessed  results.  Such  a  meeting  had  never  been  known 
in  that  community.  The  first  convert  was  Mr.  Robert  W. 
George,  and  he  was  followed  by  many,  in  some  cases 
whole  families  coming  together.  In  the  following  Octo- 
ber Dan  River  Church  was  organized  with  58  members. 

In  the  winter  of  1892,  Dr.  Rose  assisted  Mr.  Miller 
in  a  meeting  at  Danbury  with  blessed  results.  A  church 
building  was  immediately  begun,  and  in  1894  Mr.  Black 
held  a  meeting  there  with  Mr.  Miller,  and  soon  after- 
wards the  Danbury  Church  building  was  completed,  and 
the  church  was  organized  with  33  charter  members. 

In  the  summer  of  1894  Mr.  Miller  held  a  meeting  in 
the  woods,  in  the  northwest  corner  of  the  county,  assisted 
by  Mr.  L.  A.  Coulter  and  Rev.  A.  S.  Caldwell.  Twenty- 
nine  persons  were  received  into  the  Presbyterian  Church, 
but  there  was  no  building.  Mr.  George,  heretofore  re- 
ferred to,  proposed  to  the  people  on  the  ground  that  he 
would  pay  one-half  the  cost  of  a  church  building  if  they 
would  raise  the  other  half.  The  proposition  was  accepted, 
and  soon  afterwards  the  Asbury  Church  building  was 
completed,  and  the  church  organized  and  dedicated. 

In  another  region,  inhabited  largely  by  blockade  dis- 
tillers, Mr.  Miller  preached  faithfully  for  a  long  time 
under  great  difficulties  and  bitter  opposition ;  but  finally 
he  organized  a  small  church  known  as  Snow  Hill.    He 


In  North  Carolina.  83 

was  greatly  assisted  here  by  a  noble  young  lady,  Miss 
Annie  Query,  who  taught  school  and  boarded  right  in  the 
midst  of  the  blockaders. 

In  1896  Orange  Presbytery  licensed  and  ordained,  as 
an  extraordinary  case,  Mr.  Robert  W.  George  to  labor  as 
a  native  evangelist  in  Stokes  county  and  the  surrounding 
country. 

For  some  time  Mr.  George  had  been  practically  preach- 
ing, going  from  house  to  house  and  holding  prayer 
meetings,  and  telling  the  people  what  the  Lord  had  done 
for  him.  Very  soon  afterwards  he  built  a  church,  which 
was  afterwards  organized  and  known  as  Pine  Ridge, 
in  the  edge  of  Surry  county,  adjoining  Stokes.  He  was 
instrumental  in  building  and  organizing  Pine  Hall 
Church,  in  Stokes  county,  and  also  Sandy  Ridge  Church, 
in  the  same  county,  paying  half  of  the  cost  of  both  build- 
ings. Mr.  George  is  a  wonderful  man — a  wonderful 
monument  of  God's  grace,  possessed  of  a  strong  mind 
and  body,  a  big  heart  and  full  of  the  Master's  Spirit.  He 
has  done,  and  is  still  doing  a  great  work  in  his  native 
county. 

Mr.  Miller  left  the  field  in  1897,  and  was  recalled  to  it 
in  1899.  I^  ^^'^^  mean  time  the  churches  were  supplied 
by  Rev.  S.  S.  Oliver  and  Rev.  Robert  W.  George.  After 
Mr.  Miller's  return  he  strengthened  the  work  he  had 
planted,  and  sowed  good  seed  abundantly.  He  preached 
in  the  highways  and  hedges,  in  school-houses,  under 
brush  arbors,  in  the  woods  and  everywhere.  His  name 
and  labors  will  never  be  forgotten  in  Stokes  county.  He 
left  the  synod  in  1903,  but  returned  again,  and  at  present 
is  a  beloved  minister  of  King's  Mountain  Presbytery,  and 
resides  at  Dallas,  N.  C. 

A  similar  story,  with  perhaps  more  thrilling  incidents 
and  along  somewhat  different  lines,  might  be  told  of  the 


84  The  Presbyterian  Church 

wonderful  labors  of  Rev.  R.  P.  Pell,  in  ]\Iitchell  and 
Watauga  counties.  The  data  is  not  in  hand  to  give  a 
detailed  account  of  ]\lr.  Pell's  work,  but  it  was  far  more 
than  that  of  an  evangelist.  It  lay  along  educational  lines 
as  well  as  preaching  the  Gospel,  and  was  far-reaching  in 
its  results,  and  if  the  data  were  in  hand,  the  story  of  the 
beginning  of  the  great  educational  work  at  Banner  Elk, 
in  Watauga  county  and  at  Spruce  Pine,  Plum  Tree  and 
Elk  Park,  in  Mitchell  county,  would  have  to  be  told.  The 
story  would  require  a  whole  chapter  in  itself,  as  one  of 
the  great  results  of  Synodical  Home  Missions. 

Mr.  Pell  was  ordained  as  an  evangelist  of  Orange 
Presbytery  September  2,  1887,  and  he  was  a  most  faith- 
ful and  successful  evangelist  of  Orange  and  Albemarle 
Presbyteries  until  June,  1891,  when  he  entered  Mitchell 
and  Watauga  counties  as  the  district  evangelist  for  the 
synod.  At  that  time  there  was  no  Presbyterian  church 
in  Mitchell  county,  and  only  one  small  church  in  Watauga. 
The  following  is  a  condensed  summary  of  Mr.  Pell's 
work,  given  to  the  synod  in  1894,  viz. :  "Churches  in 
charge,  4;  mission  points,  5;  communicants,  162;  Sabbath 
schools,  4 ;  pupils,  275  ;  day  schools,  3 ;  pupils,  275,  with 
7  teachers ;  regular  prayer  meetings,  3 ;  seven  elders  and 
four  deacons ;  buildings  completed,  4,  and  i  partly  com- 
pleted (and  for  the  past  year),  40  acres  of  land  secured, 
45  baptisms,  68  additions,  and  money  collected  for  church 
and  school  purposes,  $787."  Last  year  Mr.  Pell  had  re- 
f>orted  that  he  had  cultivated  10  points  with  considerable 
regularity,  and  had  collected  $1,543;  and  the  year  before 
he  states  the  donation  of  50  acres  of  land.  He  travelle  1 
hundreds  and  hundreds  of  miles  in  his  buggy  and  on 
horseback  over  hills,  mountains  and  dales,  and  held  an 
unknown  number  of  services  in  sowing  the  good  seed, 
which  are  now  bringing  forth  an  abundant  harvest.     He 


In  North  Carolina.  85 

left  the  synod  early  in  1905,  and  at  present  is  the  honored 
president  of  Converse  College,  at  Spartanburg,  S.  C. 

The  Rev.  William  Black  was  licensed  by  Fayetteville 
Presbytery  January  17,  1893,  and  on  the  same  day  he  was 
transferred  to  Mecklenburg  Presbytery,  where  he  im- 
mediately began  his  work  as  evangelist  in  Union  and 
Anson  counties.  He  was  ordained  May  9,  1893,  and  the 
report  of  his  year's  work  to  the  synod  of  1893  was  as 
follows:  "  Personally  conducted  218  services  and  assisted 
in  96 ;  professed  conversions,  757 ;  additions  to  the  Pres- 
byterian Church,  102 ;  churches  built,  2  and  i  organized ; 
Sunday-schools  organized,  2 ;  elders,  4,  and  deacons,  2 
ordained ;  baptisms,  79  adults  and  2  infants." 

The  splendid  reports  of  others  who  were  engaged  in 
evangelistic  work  about  this  time,  such  men  as  Rev.  M. 
McG.  Shields,  Rev.  W.  C.  Alexander,  Rev.  F.  W.  Par- 
ries^ Rev.  C.  W.  Robinson,  and  many  others,  might  be 
cited  to  show  the  progress  of  the  work. 

But  enough ;  the  work  went  steadily  forward  in  spite  of 
all  difficulties  and  hindrances. 

The  year  1894  marks  the  beginning  of  the  career  of  the 
Rev.  William  Black  in  full  connection  with  Synodical 
Home  Missions,  which  connection  has  continued  uninter- 
ruptedly until  the  present  time,  a  period  of  more  than 
thirteen  years. 

As  has  been  stated,  Mr.  Black  was  elected  superin- 
tendent to  succeed  the  Rev.  Dr.  Smith  January  15,  1894, 
and  he  entered  upon  the  full  duties  of  superintendent,  in- 
cluding the  work  of  general  evangelist,  on  February  15. 
1894.  It  was  at  a  time  when  the  whole  country  was  be- 
ginning to  feel  the  depression  in  business  on  account  of 
the  money  panic,  but  at  the  end  of  the  year  the  reports 
showed  marked  progress  along  all  lines.  The  sum  of 
about  $23,000  had  been  raised  in  the  synod  for  evangelis- 


86  The  Presbyterian  Church 

tic  work,  and  all  the  workers  had  been  paid  without 
incurring  debt.  There  were  now  forty-six  evangelists, 
synodical  and  Presbyterial,  at  work  in  the  synod,  for  the 
whole  or  part  of  their  time;  and  through  these  it  was 
reported  that  there  had  been  1,198  additions  to  the  church, 
and  of  this  number  526  were  reported  by  synodical 
evangelists. 

During  the  next  two  years  the  financial  embarrassments 
of  the  country  were  felt  more  keenly,  and  the  contribu- 
tions to  the  work  suffered  a  slight  decrease,  while  the 
demands  of  the  work  increased.  Consequently  there  was 
a  deficit ;  but  in  spite  of  the  deficit  the  work  went  steadily 
forward.  The  policy  of  the  Presbyteries  and  of  the 
churches  had  now  become  so  fixed  as  to  render  the  con- 
duct of  the  work  somewhat  easier  and  more  certain  and 
satisfactory.  Yet  it  was  felt  that  the  combined  work  of 
superintendent  and  general  evangelist  was  too  heavy  a 
burden  to  be  borne  by  any  one  man,  and  ought  to  be 
separated.  For  example,  the  reports  of  1895  and  1896 
showed  that  Mr.  Black  had  held  45  meetings,  had 
preached  more  than  700  times,  had  added  728  persons 
to  the  church,  and  had  acted  as  secretary  and  treasurer, 
which  involved  the  writing  and  mailing  of  hundreds  and 
thousands  of  letters  and  circulars ;  collecting  and  disburs- 
ing all  the  funds,  looking  after  the  work  of  the  whole 
field,  and  raising  money  for  its  support.  Consequently 
the  synod  of  1896  recognizing  the  need  of  more  active 
prosecution  of  the  financial  side  of  the  work,  and  not 
wishing  to  draw  more  of  the  superintendent's  time  from 
the  evangelistic  work,  in  which  he  had  been  so  eminently 
blessed,  the  synod  authorized  the  committee  to  secure 
the  services  of  an  assistant  superintendent.  But  when 
the  committee  met  it  relieved  Mr.  Black,  the  general 
evangelist,  of  the  entire  responsibility  of  the  conduct  and 


In  North  Carolina.  87 

support  of  the  work  by  electing  the  Rev.  A.  J.  McKelway, 
D.  D.,  superintendent,  to  take  charge  of  this  part  of  the 
work,  and  in  order  that  Mr.  Black  might  devote  his  entire 
time  to  the  work  of  general  evangelist.  The  next  synod 
endorsed  this  action  of  the  committee,  and  this  plan  has 
been  continued  until  the  present  time,  and  the  Rev.  Wil- 
liam Black  has  been  re-elected  by  the  synod,  usually  by  a 
rising  vote,  from  year  to  year,  as  the  one  general  evan- 
gelist of  the  Synod  of  North  Carolina. 


CHAPTER   VII. 

The  Continued  Progress,  and  Some  of  the  Results, 

OF    Synodical    Home    Missions    in    North 

Carolina,  and  the  Men  of  the  Times. 

The  Rev.  A.  J.   McKehvay,  D.   D.,   was  elected   and 
entered   upon   his    work   as   superintendent   in   January, 

1897.  During  a  part  of  this  year  he  gave  only  one-half 
of  his  time  to  the  work,  the  other  half  being  given  to 
his  pastorate  in  Fayetteville.  He  also,  published  for  a 
time  a  paper  called  "  The  Synodical  Evangelist,"  which 
was  a  source  of  much  information  and  help  to  the  cause. 
During  the  administration  of  Dr.  jMcKelway,  which  was 
nearly  two  years,  he  attended  the  meetings  of  the  Presby- 
teries, visited  a  great  many  churches,  and  by  personal 
appeal  secured,  in  cash  and  subscriptions  several  thous- 
and dollars  for  the  support  of  the  work.  As  many  as  five 
or  six  new  counties  were  opened  to  Presbyterianism,  and 
as  many  new  men  were  placed  in  the  field.  Dr.  McKel- 
way  was  a  faithful  and  efficient  superintendent,  and  under 
his  administration  the  work  was  aggressive;  but  about 
this  time  he  became  manager  and  editor  of  the  "  North 
Carolina  Presbyterian,"  and  the  ever  increasing  demands 
of  the  work  required  the  whole  time  and  energies  of  a 
man  to  present  the  cause  to  the  churches,  from  year  to 
year,  and  to  keep  the  financial  needs  adequate  to  the 
demands.     Consequently,  at  the  meeting  of  the  Synod  of 

1898,  Dr.  McKelway  resigned  as  superintendent,  that  he 
might  give  his  whole  time  to  editorial  work,  having  be- 
come editor  of  the  "  North  Carolina  Presbyterian." 

The  responsibility  of  the  work  of  the  superintendent 


In  North  Carolina.  89 

devolved  again  for  a  short  time  upon  the  Rev.  WilUam 
Black,  general  evangelist. 

In  order  to  show  the  progress  of  the  work  about  this 
time,  and  especially  the  increasing  demand  for  all  of  the 
time  and  energies  of  a  superintendent,  it  is  only  neces- 
sary to  revert  to  one  of  the  results  of  Home  Missions 
in  the  year  1896.  It  was  the  formation  of  Asheville  Pres- 
bytery, set  off  from  Alecklenburg,  on  November  12,  1896. 
This  Presbytery  is  composed  of  11  counties,  19  churches, 
10  ministers  and  1,000  communicants.  The  territory  lies 
west  of  the  Blue  Ridge,  and  embraces  the  counties  of 
Buncombe,  Clay,  Cherokee,  Graham,  Haywood,  Hender- 
son, Jackson,  Macon,  Madison,  Transylvania  and  Swain. 
This  Presbytery  was  almost  entirely  missionary  ground 
and  greatly  increased  the  duties  of  the  superintendent.  In 
1896  there  was  no  Presbyterian  church  in  four  of  these 
counties,  and  there  were  not  more  than  150  communi- 
cants all  told  in  about  four  of  the  other  counties  com- 
bined. At  the  present  time  every  county  has  been  entered, 
and  there  are  25  churches  with  more  than  1,700  communi- 
cants, and  nearly  $22,000  in  aggregate  is  raised  in  the 
Presbytery.  There  have  been  great  transformations  in 
that  part  of  the  country  within  the  last  ten  or  twelve  years, 
and  whatever  of  good  has  resulted  in  this  region  from 
Presbyterianism  through  evangelistic  efforts,  a  large 
share  of  that  good  is  due  to  the  earnest  missionary  spirit 
and  great  liberality  of  the  First  Presbyterian  Church  of 
Asheville,  under  the  able  leadership  of  its  beloved  pastor, 
the  Rev.  R.  F.  Campbell,  D.  D.  And  in  conjunction  with 
this  church,  due  credit  should  be  given  for  the  success 
achieved  to  the  Rev.  R.  P.  Smith  and  the  Rev.  E.  Mac- 
Davis. 

The  Rev.  R.  P.  Smith  became  a  member  of  the  synod 
and  pastor  of  the  Gastonia  Church  in  1893,  and  from  that 


90  The  Presbyterian  Church 

day  until  the  present  time  he  has  been  identified  with 
evangeHstic  work.  After  a  most  succe.ssful  work  as  pastor 
of  the  Gastonia  Church  he  became  the  general  evangelist 
for  Mecklenburg  Presbyter}-,  and  he  labored  in  some  of 
these  counties  before  the  Asheville  Presbytery  was 
formed.  After  the  formation  of  the  Presbytery,  he  be- 
came its  general  evangelist  until  1904,  when  the  synod 
called  him  to  the  office  of  superintendent  of  Synodical 
Home  ^Missions.  For  more  than  eight  years  }vlr.  Smith 
was  evangelist  of  this  Presbytery,  and  during  that  time, 
as  a  brother  minister  has  said,  ''he  was  eyes,  ears,  hands 
and  feet  to  the  Presbytery's  Home  Mission  Committee." 
He  travelled  through  the  valleys  and  over  the  mountains 
in  all  sorts  of  conveyances,  on  horseback  and  mule-back, 
with  or  without  saddle,  and  often  on  foot.  He  preached 
to  the  people  in  churches,  school  houses  and  groves,  by 
the  wayside  and  from  house  to  house.  He  planned  most 
of  the  buildings  erected,  purchased  the  material,  and 
superintended  the  work  from  start  to  finish.  He  organized 
churches  and  schools,  fostered  them  with  his  personal 
care,  and  found  preachers  and  teachers  to  take  charge  of 
them.  Thus  he  was  not  only  "all  things  to  all  men,"  but 
well-nigh  ''^all  men  to  all  things."  Mr.  Smith  is  a  man  of 
lovable  disposition  and  temperament,  and  has  a  great 
fondness  for  children,  and  he  has  never  failed  to  find  an 
oi>en  door  to  the  homes  of  the  people,  with  whom  he  has 
labored  and  with  whom  he  is  exceedmgly  popular.  He  is 
a  faithful  and  earnest  preacher,  his  manner  showing  that 
he  believes  what  he  preaches,  and  much  of  the  success 
that  has  marked  the  mission  work  in  Western  North 
Carolina  has  been  due  to  the  wisdom,  energy  and  conse- 
cration of  Rev.  Robert  P.  Smith. 

The  Rev.  E.   Mac.  Davis  was  the  pioneer  evangelist 
of  Madison  county,  beginning  his  labors  in  the  summer 


REV.   R.   p.  SMITH. 


In  North  Carolina.  91 

of  1897  and  continuing  until  1904.  In  the  brief  reports 
to  synod  of  his  work  we  learn  that  he  preached  at  about 
thirty-eight  points,  distributed  thousands  of  tracts  and 
books,  and  travelled  thousands  of  miles.  He  organized 
three  or  four  churches  and  a  large  number  of  Sunday- 
schools  and  mission  summer  day  schools.  He  secured 
for  teachers  and  as  helpers  in  his  Sunday-school  work 
from  time  to  time  during  his  sojourn  of  about  six  years, 
andi  usually  without  cost  to  the  committee,  the  following 
persons,  viz. :  Misses  Margaret  Allison,  Elizabeth  Tucker, 
Elizabeth  and  Fanny  McPhearson,  Janie  Vaughan,  Bessie 
Black,  Urbie  Myrover,  Kathrene  Jarrell,  Ethie  Vickery, 
Lula  Barnett,  Miss  Ferguson,  Miss  Rea,  Anna  McDon- 
ald, and  Mr.  T.  G.  Rogers.  Misses  Allison,  Black  and 
McDonald  were  with  him,  perhaps,  longer  than  some  of 
the  others,  but  a  great  and  grand  work  was  done  by  all 
of  these  noble,  self-sacrificing. women.  Mr.  Davis  was  a 
man  of  strong  convictions  of  truth  and  righteousness,  and 
was  absolutely  fearless.  He  had  many  conflicts  with  the 
illicit  distillers  and  whiskey  interests  in  this  county,  and 
at  times  his  personal  safety  was  threatened,  but  in  190 1 
he  won  a  great  victory  in  his  field  by  his  valiant  labors, 
resulting  in  the  passage  of  a  prohibition  law  covering 
three  counties.  We  cannot  estimate  the  value  of  this 
faithful  soldier's  service  for  the  Master  in  that  section. 
The  churches  he  has  left  behind  him,  with  a  membership 
of  perhaps  200  are  his  memorial.  He  did  a  fine  work, 
and  the  people  will  not  soon  forget  his  zeal  and  energy 
and  noble  efforts  for  the  cause  of  God  and  humanity. 

After  the  resignation  of  Dr.  A.  J.  McKelway  as  super- 
intendent, in  October,  1898,  the  Rev.  William  Black, 
general  evangelist,  acted  as  superintendent  the  remainder 
of  the  year,  and  in  January,  1899,  the  committee,  In  its 
wisdom,  selected  for  the  ofiice  of  superintendent  the  Rev. 


92  The  Presbyterian  Church 

E.  E.  Gillespie,  a  young  man  of  splendid  attainments, 
and  an  evangelist  of  Orange  Presbytery,  who  entered 
upon  his  work  as  superintendent  January  i6,  1899.  Mr. 
Gillespie  continued  in  this  position,  filling  the  office  of 
superintendent  with  great  acceptance,  ability  and  success, 
until  the  end  of  the  year  1904,  a  period  of  six  years, 
within  which  time  great  things  were  done  for  the  ad- 
vancement of  the  Kingdom  of  Christ. 

It  will  be  remembered  that  the  first  permanent  Commit- 
tee on  Synodical  Home  Missions  was  constituted  at  Char- 
lotte in  1889,  and  the  first  report  of  that  committee  was 
made  at  Wilmington  in  1890.  At  that  time  the  report 
showed  that  the  synod  was  composed  of  six  Presbyteries, 
including  Albemarle,  which  had  just  been  formed,  127 
ministers,  275  churches  and  26,189  communicants.  The 
report  also  showed  that  the  following  2^  counties  had  no 
Presbyterian  church  within  their  borders,  viz. :  Alleghany, 
Ashe,  Bertie,  Brunswick,  Camden,  Cherokee,  Chowan, 
Currituck,  Dare,  Gates,  Graham,  Greene,  Hertford,  Hyde, 
Jackson,  ]Madison,  Martin,  Mitchell,  Northampton,  Pam- 
lico, Perquimans,  Person,  Pitt,  Stokes,  Tyrrell,  Wash- 
ington and  Yancey;  and  19  other  counties  had  but  one 
Presbyterian  church  each,  making  46  counties  either 
wholly  or  almost  destitute  of  Presbyterianism.  The  re- 
port, moreover,  showed  that  the  aggregate  funds  raised  in 
the  synod  for  all  causes  and  reported  to  the  Assembly 
amounted  to  $194,385.00,  and  that  there  were  not  more 
than  twelve  ministers  engaged  for  a  part  or  the  whole  of 
their  time  in  evangelistic  work. 

In  1900,  after  a  lapse  of  ten  years,  the  reports  show  that 
there  were  7  Presbyteries,  160  ministers,  377  churches, 
34,634  communicants ;  only  17  vacant  counties,  23  Presby- 
terial  evangelists.  14  ministers,  not  including  the  super- 
intendent and  general  evangelist,  and  a  large  number  of 


In  North  Carolina.  93 

male  and  female  teachers,  doing  evangelistic  work,  and 
that  the  aggregate  amount  of  funds  collected  for  all 
causes  and   reported   to  the  Assembly  was  $220,946.00. 

Thus  it  will  be  seen  by  this  comparison  that  at  the  end 
of  ten  years  there  was  a  decided  advance  along  all  lines 
in  overtaking  the  destitutions. 

The  names  of  the  ministers  employed  under  the  direc- 
tion, of  the  Synodical  Committee  for  a  part  or  the  whole 
of  their  time,  and  at  some  time  during  the  past  ten  years 
are  as  follows : 

Superintendents — Rev.  Alexander  Sprunt,  Rev.  E.  W. 
Smith,  Rev.  William  Black,  Rev.  A.  J.  McKelway  and 
Rev.  E.  E.  Gillespie. 

General  Evangelists — Rev.  W.  D.  Morton,  Rev.  E.  W. 
Smith,  Rev.  W.  E.  Mcllwaine,  Rev.  John  ]M.  Rose  and 
Rev.  William  Black. 

District  or  Local  Evangelists — Revs.  Messrs.  C.  W. 
Maxwell,  J.  C.  McMullen,  R.  P.  Pell,  F.  H.  Johnston,  C. 
Miller,  M.  McG.  Shields,  W.  C.  Alexander,  C.  W.  Robin- 
son, F.  D.  Farris,  D.  J.  Currie,  Jonas  Barclay,  B.  Souher, 
John  Wakefield,  L.  A.  McLaurin,  Edgar  Tufts,  L.  E. 
Bostian,  A.  K.  Pool,  J.  E.  Balou,  E.  Mac.  Davis,  John 
Grey,  P.  C.  Morton,  James  Thomas,  F.  D.  Thomas,  C.  N. 
Wharton,  E.  D.  Brown,  W.  T.  Walker,  W.  M.  Shaw,  J. 
E.  L.  Winecoff,  E.  P.  Bradley  and  Allen  Jones,  Jr. 

There  were  also  a  number  of  Presbyterial  evangelists 
in  no  wise  connected  with  the  Synodical  Committee,  and 
all  of  these  brethren  labored  faithfully  and  efficiently,  and 
were  the  instruments  in  God's  hands  in  disseminating  the 
truth  in  preaching  the  pure  Gospel,  in  building  and  or- 
ganizing churches,  in  the  conversion  of  thousands  of  souls, 
and  in  strengthening  the  faith  and  comforting  the  hearts 
of  tens  of  thousands  of  God's  people.  It  is  impossible 
to  estimate  or  reduce  to  figures  the  good  results  of  the 


94  The  Presbyterian  Church 

labors  of  these  men  during  these  ten  years.  God  only 
knows.  There  were  also  a  number  of  teachers,  mostly 
ladies,  of  mission  schools,  whose  names  are  not  at  hand, 
who  did  a  noble  work  and  rendered  great  assistance  to 
the  Home  Mission  cause. 

Of  the  above  named  ministers,  at  least  four  of  them, 
the  Rev.  F.  H.  Johnston,  D.  D.,  the  Rev.  Paul  C.  Morton, 
the  Rev.  E.  Mac.  Davis,  and  the  Rev.  A.  K.  Pool,  have 
gone  to  their  blessed  reward,  and  have  joined  scores  and 
scores  of  those  who  heard  them  preach  and  sing  the 
story  of  redeeming  love  while  on  earth. 

The  Rev.  Dr.  Johnston  and  the  Rev.  Mr.  Morton  be- 
longed to  that  class  of  ministers  who  had  labored  faith- 
fully and  long  before  the  origin  of  synodical  missions. 
Dr.  Johnston  was  the  son  of  a  missionary,  and  was  born 
in  Constantinople  August  8,  1834.  He  spent  the  first  six.- 
teen  years  of  his  life  in  the  far-off  land  of  Asia  Minor. 
He  came  to  North  Carolina,  the  native  land  of  his  fathers, 
in  1 85 1,  and  was  educated  at  Davidson  College.  For 
thirty-three  years  he  was  a  beloved  and  successful  pastor, 
iirst  at  Lexington  and  afterwards  at  Winston,  N.  C.  He 
was  the  honored  stated  clerk  of  old  Orange  Presbytery 
for  twelve  years,  and  was  elected  general  evangelist  be- 
fore the  formation  of  Albemarle,  and  in  1890  he  was 
residing  within  its  bounds.  He  continued  in  the  evan- 
gelistic work  until  his  death,  November  14,  1901. 

Dr.  Johnston  was  the  recipient  of  many  honors,  and  the 
depository  of  many  trusts  from  the  church.  He  was  a 
scholarly  man,  and  his  judgment  was  clear  and  con- 
clusive. He  was  one  of  the  central  figures  in  the  great 
Synodical  Movement,  and  gave  to  it  his  hearty  support, 
and  his  successful  evangelistic  labors  were  wrought  in 
Albemarle  Presbytery.  He  was  a  profound  and  edifying 
preacher,  gentle  and  retiring  in  his  disposition  and  man- 


REN/.    F.    H-    JOHNSTON,    D.    D. 


In  North  Carolina.  95 

ners,  but  brave  and  courageous  in  defense  of  the  truth. 
He  was  as  modest  as  a  pure  woman,  and  a  most  agreeable 
and  pleasant  companion  with  his  old  and  tried  friends 
and  with  those  who  knew  him  best — 

''  None  knew  him  but  to  love  him ; 
None  named  him  but  to  praise." 

The  Rev.  Mr.  Morton  came  to  the  Synod  of  North 
Carolina  in  1895,  and  until  his  death,  in  1902,  he  did  gen- 
eral evangelistic  work,  especially  within  the  bounds  of 
Wilmington  Presbytery.  He  was  a  brave  soldier  chaplain 
of  the  Civil  War,  and  many  incidents  are  related  of  his  re- 
markable bravery  and  fearlessness.  "  He  was  a  good 
man,  full  of  the  Holy  Ghost  and  faith,  and  he  lived  in  an 
atmosphere  of  prayer."  After  his  death  it  was  said  of  him 
by  one  who  knew  him  well :  "  His  character  was  golden, 
his  life  was  simple,  his  zeal  was  abounding,  his  love  deep, 
his  faith  unfaltering,  his  spiritual  being  high  and  lifted 
up,  through  the  power  of  Divine  grace." 

The  Rev.  E.  Mac.  Davis,  after  retiring  from  the  Avork 
in  Madison  county,  accepted  work  in  the  Synod  of 
Georgia,  and  soon  afterwards  his  health  failed  and  the 
Lord  called  him  to  his  reward. 

The  Rev.  A.  K.  Pool  was  a  young  man  of  sweet  dispo- 
sition and  lovely  spirit,  and  for  about  three  years  of  his 
life  he  was  an  ordained  minister,  an  evangelist  of  Concord 
Presbytery,  and  the  synod's  assistant  to  the  Rev.  Mr. 
Black,  the  general  evangelist.  The  churches  of  Forest 
Hill,  McKinnon  and  Patterson  Mills,  in  Concord  Presby- 
tery, are  largely  the  fruits  of  his  labors.  He  had  to  give 
up  the  work  of  preaching  the  Gospel  on  account  of  failing 
health,  and  for  more  than  a  year  before  his  death  he  was 
continuously  with  Mr.  Black  in  his  meetings,  and  devoted 
his  whole  time  to  singing  the  Gospel,  which  he  did  with 


96  The  Presbyterian  Church 

great  power  and  unction.  He  was  the  assistant  director 
of  the  music  at  the  Biblical  Institute  held  at  Red  Springs 
in  1892,  and  he  had  entire  control  of  the  music  of  the 
institute  held  there  and  at  Gastonia  in  1893. 

'*  Mr.  Pool  had  rare  gifts  as  a  singer,  possessing,  as  he 
did,  not  only  a  thorough  knowledge  of  music,  but  one  of 
the  sweetest  voices  ever  heard  in  the  State.  He  rendered 
much  valuable  aid  to  Mr.  Black  in  the  meetings  which 
were  held,  and  Mr.  Black  speaks  of  a  number  of  instances 
in  which  he  believes  men  were  saved  through  his  singing, 
upon  whom  the  preaching  seemed  to  have  but  little  effect. 
Mr.  Pool  was  engaged  in  one  of  these  meetings  when  he 
was  taken  sick,  and  from  which  sickness  he  never  rallied, 
but  died  as  it  were  in  the  harness,  August  7,  1899, 
in  the  thirty-fourth  year  of  his  age,  among  the  peo- 
ple where  he  had  been  laboring  last.  The  last  piece 
he  sang  in  one  of  these  meetings  was  ''  Saved  by  Grace," 
which  he  did  not  only  with  rare  sweetness,  but  with  great 
ejffect  upon  the  audience.  There  are  at  the  present  time 
four  Presbyterian  churches  within  a  radius  of  about  four 
miles  of  the  place  of  his  death — Democrat,  N.  C. — and  at 
that  time  there  were  none  at  all.  Of  course  all  of  this  is 
not  due  to  him,  but  much  of  it  is,  as  perhaps  nowhere  else 
did  his  singing  make  a  greater  impression  than  among 
those  plain  but  appreciative  mountaineers.  In  the  synod's 
obituary  of  him  it  is  said :  "  The  sweet  singer  of  the 
Synod  of  North  Carolina  is  heard  here  no  more,  but  he 
still  sings  the  praises  of  redeeming  love,  with  a  harp  in 
his  hands  and  a  crown  on  his  head,  where  there  is  no 
more  sickness  and  no  more  death." 

The  Rev.  E.  E.  Gillespie  occupied  the  position  of  super- 
intendent from  the  beginning  of  the  year  1899  to  the  end 
of  the  year  1904,  a  period  of  six  years,  and  during  that 
time  the  work  of  Synodical  Missions  went  steadily  and 


REV.   A.   K-    POOL. 


In  North  Carolina.  97 

increasingly  forward,  and  prospered  to  a  very  high 
degree.  The  superintendent,  the  general  evangelist  and 
the  committee  went  hand  in  hand  and  shoulder  to  shoulder 
to  the  great  work  to  which  God  had  so  manifestly  called 
them.  A  great  deal  was  accomplished  for  the  Master's 
kingdom. 

In  1899  Mr.  Gillespie  found  a  debt  of  $4,843  resting 
upon  the  work.  This  debt  was  cancelled  the  first  year, 
and  there  was  a  steady  enlargement  of  the  work  each 
year  during  the  time  of  his  service.  He  received  and 
collected  in  cash  for  the  support  of  the  work  during  his 
administration  the  sum  of  nearly  $55,000.  He  visited 
most  of  the  churches  in  the  synod  and  held  more  than  a 
thousand  services.  Many  of  these  services  were  pro- 
tracted, wherein  he  witnessed  the  conversion  of  many 
precious  souls,  and  saw  a  large  number  added  to  the 
church. 

Mr.  Gillespie  was  specially  fitted  for  the  work,  a  man 
of  commanding  personal  appearance,  attractive  in  his 
manners,  full  of  zeal  and  energy,  and  possessing  great 
executive  ability.  God  greatly  blessed  him  in  the  work. 
During  his  administration,  the  following  additional  min- 
isters were  employed  by  the  committee  and  placed  in  the 
field  for  the  whole  or  a  part  of  their  time:  Rev.  Messrs. 
D.  Munroe,  J.  S.  Smith,  J.  H.  Jarvis,  E.  Garrow,  W.  A. 
Murray,  J.  A.  Harris,  L.  E.  Wells,  J.  C.  Story,  R.  M. 
Mann,  J.  P.  Hall,  A.  H.  Temple,  P.  C.  Irwin,  I.  N.  Clegg, 
H.  Garrow,  H.  H.  Cassady,  S.  C.  Smith,  R.  L.  Grier,  C. 
W.  McDonald,  F.  G.  Hartman,  R.  H.  Orr,  L.  W.  Curtis, 
F.  E.  Ghigo,  J.  C.  Hardin,  and  W.  T.  D.  Moss,  besides  a 
large  number  of  male  and  female  teachers.  It  was  also 
during  his  administration,  October  23,  1902,  that  the  Pres- 
bytery of  "King's  Mountain''  was  formed. 

This  Presbytery,  the  second  daughter  of  Mecklenburg, 


98  The  Presbyterian  Church 

was  another  result  of  Synodical  Home  Missions.  The 
first  meeting  was  held  at  Lincolnton,  N.  C,  November 
18,  1902,  and  the  Rev.  R.  A.  Miller  preached  the  opening 
sermon. 

On  the  retirement  of  Mr.  Gillespie,  at  the  close  of  the 
year  1904,  and  in  order  to  take  a  special  course  of  study 
and  to  eventually  become  a  pastor,  the  synod  adopted  the 
following  resolution : 

*'  Resolved^  That  the  Synod  of  North  Carolina  would 
record  its  profound  gratitude  to  our  gracious  God  for  the 
noble  work  that  he  has  enabled  our  retiring  superintend- 
ent, Rev.  E.  E.  Gillespie,  to  do  for  our  mission  field  during 
the  past  six  years,  and  that  it  would  express  to  Brother 
Gillespie  its  cordial  appreciation  of  his  zealous,  faithfal 
and  efficient  labors  for  Home  Missions,  and  that  it  would 
invoke  upon  him  and  his  efforts  the  same  Divine  blessing 
in  any  field  to  which  he  may  be  called,  that  has  manifestly 
rested  upon  his  endeavors  within  our  bounds." 

Mr.  Gillespie,  at  present,  is  a  member  of  the  Synod  of 
South  Carolina,  and  the  beloved  pastor  of  the  Yorkville 
Presbyterian  Church. 

It  has  already  been  stated  that  the  synod,  at  Durham, 
N.  C,  November  17,  1904,  elected  the  Rev.  R.  P.  Smith 
superintendent  of  Synodical  Home  Missions  as  the  worthy 
successor  of  Rev.  Mr.  Gillespie,  and  the  time  that  has 
elapsed  since  has  proven  that  the  synod  made  no  mistake 
in  that  election.  Mr.  Smith  came  to  the  Synod  of  North 
Carolina  in  1893,  as  stated  elsewhere  in  these  pages,  and 
from  that  date  to  the  present  time  has  proven  himself  to 
be  a  faithful  pastor,  an  earnest  and  successful  evangelist, 
and  a  wise  and  efficient  superintendent. 

Mr.  Smith  is  a  man  of  fine  attainments,  possessing  a 
winning  disposition  and  cordial  manners,  a  big  heart  full 
of  love  to  God  and  man,  and  manifesting  a  zeal,  energy 


In  North  Carolina.  99 

and  devotion  which  are  untiring  for  the  cause  of  the 
Master.  The  conduct  of  the  synod's  great  mission  work 
is  safe  in  his  hands. 

His  report  as  superintendent  of  the  synod's  work  for 
the  year  1905  shows  that  25  ministers  had  been  preach- 
ing the  Word  in  destitute  places ;  that  22  volunteer  teach- 
ers had  been  teaching  more  than  1,000  children,  and  that 
507  communicants  had  been  added  to  the  church.  His 
report  for  the  year  1906  shows  that  27  ministers  had 
served  71  small  churches  and  70  mission  points;  that  5 
churches  and  30  Sabbath-schools  had  been  organized  in 
new  territory;  that  708  persons  had  been  added  to  the 
church,  and  that  the  sum  of  $9,558  had  been  raised  for 
the  work.  His  report  for  the  year  1907  has  not  yet  been 
made,  but  we  may  justly  believe  that  it  is  even  more 
encouraging,  showing  the  onward  march  of  the  great 
work  of  Synodical  Home  Missions  in  North  Carolin.i. 

In  all  this  onward  march  and  progress  of  missions 
through  the  past  seventeen  or  eighteen  years  there  has 
been  one  agency  contributing  largely  to  the  success  of  the 
movement,  which  ought  not  to  be  overlooked  or  lightly 
estimated,  and  that  agency  has  been  the  wisdom,  faithful- 
ness, self-denial  and  the  sound  judgment  of  the  men  who 
have  composed  the  synod's  Home  Mission  Committee,  not 
including  the  officers  of  that  committee. 

According  to  the  plan  which  was  practically  adopted  in 
1881,  and  which  was  perfected  in  1889,  the  chairman  of 
the  Home  Mission  Committee  of  each  Presbytery,  during 
his  tenure  of  office,  and  one  ruling  elder  from  each  Pres- 
bytery, elected  annually  by  the  synod,  should  constitute 
this  committee.  The  original  committee,  thus  constituted 
at  Charlotte,  N.  C,  in  1889,  was  composed  of  the  follow- 
ing persons :  Rev.  D.  I.  Craig,  Rev.  C.  A.  Munroe,  Rev. 
H.  G.  Kill,  D.  D.,  Rev.  P.  H.  Hoge,  D.  D.,  Rev.  W.  E. 


TOO  The  Presbyterian  Church 

Mcllhvainc,  D.  D.,  and  Rev.  W.  D.  Morton  upon  the 
organization  of  Albemarle  Presbytery ;  and  Ruling  Elders 
Gen.  A.  M.  Scales,  I.  H.  Foust,  Dr.  J.  W.  McNeill,  B.  F. 
Hall,  General  Rufus  Barringer  and  Samuel  Watkins. 

The  changes  in  this  committee  since  that  time  have 
been  as  follows:  The  Rev.  Mr.  Craig  was  succeeded  by 
the  Rev.  M.  McG.  Shields  in  1894;  Mr.  Shields  was  suc- 
ceeded by  Rev.  R.  W.  Culbertson  in  1898;  Mr.  Culbert- 
son  was  succeeded  by  Rev.  E.  C.  I^Iurray,  D.  D.,  in  1901 ; 
Dr.  Murray  was  succeeded  by  Rev.  D.  C.  Lilly  in  1904; 
Dr.  Lilly  was  succeeded  by  Rev.  C.  F.  Rankin  in  1905, 
and  Mr.  Rankin  was  succeeded  by  Rev.  S.  M.  Rankin  in 
1906. 

The  Rev.  C.  A.  Munroe  has  never  ceased  to  be  a 
member  of  the  committee  until  the  present  time,  except 
for  one  year,  1902,  when  he  was  succeeded  by  Rev.  W.  I. 
Matthews,  1889. 

The  Rev.  H.  G.  Hill,  D.  D.,  has  never  ceased  to  be  a 
member  of  the  committee — 1889- 1907. 

The  Rev.  Dr.  Hoge  w^as  succeeded  by  the  Rev.  A.  D. 
McClure,  D.  D.,  in  1899. 

The  Rev.  Dr.  Mclllwaine  w^as  succeeded  by  Rev.  T.  A. 
Wharton,  D.  D.,  in  1892;  Dr.  Wharton  was  succeeded  by 
Rev.  R.  A.  Miller  in  1894;  Mr.  Miller  was  succeeded  by 
Rev.  J.  R.  Howerton,  D.  D.,  in  1899;  Dr.  Howerton  was 
succeeded  by  Rev.  G.  T.  Thompson  in  1900;  Mr.  Thomp- 
son w^as  succeeded  by  Rev.  T.  J.  Allison  in  1903 ;  Mr. 
Allison  was  succeeded  by  Rev.  P.  H.  Gwynn  in  1904,  and 
Mr.  Gwynn  was  succeeded  by  Rev.  George  H.  Atkinson 
in  1906. 

Dr.  W.  D.  Morton  was  succeeded  by  Rev.  J.  B.  Morton 
in  1897,  and  Mr.  Morton  was  succeeded  by  Rev.  W.  D. 
Morton,  D.  D.,  in  1900. 

The  Rev.  R.  F.  Campbell,  D.  D.,  became  a  member  on 


In  North  Carolina.  ioi 

the  organization  of  Asheville  Presbytery  in  1896,  and  has 
never  ceased  to  be  a  member  of  the  committee — 1896. 

The  Rev.  W.  R.  Minter  became  a  member  of  the  com- 
mittee in  1902,  on  the  organization  of  King's  Alountain 
Presbytery,  and  has  continued  a  member  until  the  present 
time — 1907. 

The  changes  among  the  ruHng  elders  have  been  as  fol- 
lows : 

General  A.  M.  Scales  was  succeeded  by  Islv.  ].  M. 
Rogers  in  1891. 

Mr.  I.  H.  Foust  was  succeeded  by  Air.  J.  G.  Hall  in 
1890. 

Dr.  J.  W.  [McNeill  has  never  ceased  to  be  a  member  of 
the  committee — 1889. 

Mr.  B.  F.  Hall  has  never  ceased  to  be  a  member  of  the 
committee — 1889. 

General  Barringer  was  succeeded  by  Mr.  John  E.  Gates 
in  1890;  Mr.  Gates  was  succeeded  by  Mr.  D.  W.  Gates 
in  1892;  Mr.  Gates  was  succeeded  by  Mr.  C.  E.  Graham 
in  1894;  Mr.  Graham  was  succeeded  by  Mr.  A.  G.  Breni- 
zer  in  1896,  and  Mr.  Brenizer  was  succeeded  by  Mr.  H. 
M.  Belk  in  1905. 

Mr.  Watkins  was  succeeded  by  J\lr.  J.  R.  Young  in 
1891,  and  Mr.  Young  was  succeeded  by  Mr.  C.  M.  Brown 
in  1906. 

Mr.  Blair,  who  became  a  member  in  1896,  was  suc- 
ceeded by  Major  Robert  Bingham  in  1901,  and  Major 
Bingham  was  succeeded  by  Mr.  E.  E.  Quinlan  in  1905. 

Dr.  C.  E.  Adams  became  a  member  in  1903,  and  was 
succeeded  by  Mr.  A.  M.  Smyre  in  1905. 

Thus  it  may  be  seen  that  the  present  committee  is  com- 
posed of  the  following  members:  Rev.  S.  M.  Rankin, 
Rev.  C.  A.  Munroe,  Rev.  H.  G.  Hill,  D.  D.,  Rev.  A.  D. 
McClure,  D.  D.,  Rev.  G.  H.  Atkinson,  Rev.  A.  D.  Mor- 


102  The  Presbyterian  Church 

ton,  D.  D.,  Rev.  R.  F.  Campbell,  D.  D.,  Rev.  W.  R. 
Minter,  and  Messrs.  J.  iM.  Rogers,  J.  G.  Hall,  Dr.  J.  W. 
McNeill,  B.  F.  Hall,  H.  M.  Belk,  C.  M.  Brown,  E.  E. 
Quinlan  and  A.  M.  Smyre. 

It  is  worthy  of  note  that  of  these  persons  the  Rev.  Dr. 
Hill,  Rev.  C.A.  :\lunroe,  Dr.  J.  W.  McNeill  and  Mr.  B. 

F.  Hall  were  members  of  the  original  committee,  and 
that  all  of  them  except  Mr.  Munroe,  for  one  year,  have 
served  continuously  on  the  committee  until  the  present 
time;  and  also  Messrs.  J.  G.  Hall  and  J.  M.  Rogers  have 
served  for  nearly  the  whole  time  of  the  committee's  exist- 
ence. 

The  synod  owes  a  debt  of  gratitude  to  all  the  members 
of  this  committee  for  their  faithful  and  efficient  service, 
but  the  story  of  Synodical  Missions  as  told  in  this  book 
would  not  be  complete  without  something  more  than  the 
mere  mention  of  the  names  of  those  who  have  served  so 
long,  especially  of  that  great  and  good  man,  the  Rev.  H. 

G.  Hill,  D.  D. 

Perhaps  no  man  has  ever  served  the  church  in  North 
Carolina  who  has  been  more  abundant  in  labors  or  who 
has  been  the  recipient  of  more  important  trusts  from  the 
church  than  Dr.  Hill.  He  began  his  ministerial  career 
during  the  Civil  War  as  a  chaplain  in  the  army.  Before 
he  completed  his  course  of  study  in  the  Union  Theological 
Seminary  in  Virginia  he  was  licensed  to  preach  by  Orange 
Presbytery,  when  he  entered  the  army  as  chaplain  of  the 
Thirteenth  North  Carolina  Regiment,  commanded  by  Col- 
onel A.  M.  Scales.  In  1862  he  was  with  the  army  around 
Richmond  and  in  the  famous  Maryland  campaign.  In 
1863  he  returned  to  the  Seminary  for  a  time,  and  in  the 
winter  oi  that  year  he  was  sent  again  to  the  Army  of 
Northern  A'irginia  as  a  missionary  by  Orange  Presbytery. 
In  the  meantime,  at  intervals,  he  served  the  churches  of 


REV.   H-  G.  HiLL,  D.  D. 


In  North  Carolina.  103 

Hillsboro  and  Griers,  in  Caswell  county,  and  taught  in 
the  school  of  the  Misses  Nash  and  Kollock  in  Hillsboro. 
On  his  return  from  the  army  in  1865  he  became  pastor 
of  the  Hillsboro  Church.  In  1867  he  removed  to  Oxford, 
where  he  became  pastor  of  the  church  and  principal  of 
the  Seminary  there,  and  the  supply  of  Grassy  Creek 
Church,  and  while  here  he  started  the  erection  of  a 
church  at  Henderson.  In  1868  he  removed  to  Fayette- 
ville,  N.  C,  where  he  was  pastor,  and  doing  extensive 
pastoral  and  presbyterial  work  in  the  whole  surrounding 
country  for  eighteen  years.  In  1886  he  removed  to  Max- 
ton,  and  became  pastor  of  the  Maxton  and  Centre 
churches,  which  position  he  still  holds,  and  in  which  he 
has  been  wonderfully  blessed. 

Dr.  Hill  has  given  to  the  church  a  wonderful  example 
of  the  possibilities  and  powers  of  a  missionary  pastor.  He 
has  always  been  keenly  alive  to  the  missionary  and  educa- 
tional interests  of  the  church  around  him,  as  well  as  at 
large,  and  his  wisdom  and  influence  along  these  lines 
have  been  very  great  in  the  S}Tiod  of  North  Carolina. 
From  the  very  inception  of  the  Synodical  ''  Movement  " 
in  North  Carolina,  Dr.  Hill  has  been  a  conspicuous  figure, 
an  ardent  advocate,  a  wise  counsellor,  a  powerful  debater, 
an  eloquent  speaker,  and  a  faithful  laborer  for  the  great 
cause;  and  to  him,  perhaps  as  much,  if  not  more  than  to 
any  living  man,  is  due  the  honor  and  the  praise  of  the 
origin  and  success  of  Synodical  ^lissions  in  North  Caro- 
lina. Dr.  Hill  has  been  honored  by  the  church,  and  by 
strict  attention  to  her  calls  and  the  faithful  performance 
of  the  duties  imposed,  he  has  proven  himself  to  be  worthy 
of  the  honor.  He  has  been  made  Moderator  of  her  Pres- 
byteries, of  the  Synod  of  North  Carolina,  and  of  her 
highest  court,  the  General  Assembly ;  he  has  made  many 
public  addresses  by  the  appointment  of  the  church,  and 


I04  The  Presbyterian  Church 

has  served  on  many  of  her  important  committees,  and  at 
the  present  time  he  is  a  director  of  Union  Theological 
Seminary  in  \"irginia  and  the  president  of  the  Board  of 
Regents  of  the  Synod's  Orphan's  Home.  He  has  been 
chairman  of  the  Home  Mission  Committee  of  Fayetteville 
Presbytery  for  thirty-five  years,  and  a  member  of  the 
Synodical  Home  Mission  Committee  since  the  inception 
of  the  work.  He  is  a  recognized  able  preacher  of  the 
Gospel  of  wide  reputation,  and  enjoys  the  love  and  esteem 
of  a  devoted  people  in  his  pastorate,  and  is  a  "brother 
beloved"  by  all  the  members  of  the  Synod  of  North  Caro- 
lina. 

The  Rev.  C.  A.  Munroe  was  licensed  to  preach  by 
Fayetteville  Presbytery  in  1876,  but  was  ordained  in 
Mississippi,  where  he  labored  for  six  years.  He  returned 
to  North  Carolina  and  served  as  evangelist  of  Concord 
Presbytery  for  two  years.  He  removed  to  West  Virginia, 
where  he  labored  for  four  years,  and  then  returned  to 
North  Carolina  and  became  pastor  of  the  Hickory  and 
Lenoir  churches  in  1888.  In  1891  he  became  the  chair- 
man of  the  Home  Missions  Committee  of  Concord  Pres- 
bytery, in  connection  with  the  Lenoir  Church,  and  at  the 
present  time  he  is  the  general  evangelist  of  the  Presbytery 
and  chairman  of  the  Home  Mission  Committee.  Since 
1 89 1  he  has  been  one  of  the  most  active,  aggressive,  use- 
ful and  successful  Home  Mission  men  in  the  synod,  and 
no  man  has  been  more  faithful  in  his  work  or  in  co-opera- 
tion with  the  work  of  the  synod's  committee.  The  good 
results  of  Mr.  Munroe's  labors  have  been  abundant,  espe- 
cially in  Concord  Presbytery. 

Dr.  J.  W.  McNeill,  the  ''  beloved  physician,"  of  Cum- 
berland county,  and  Air.  B.  F.  Hall,  the  "  beloved  elder" 
and  wholesale  commission  merchant  of  Wilmington,  N. 
C,  members  of  the  original  committee,  and  Mr.  J.  G.  Hall, 


REV.   C.    A-    MUNROE 


MR.  B.  p.  Hall. 


In  North  Carolina.  105 

manager  of  the  Realty  and  Insurance  Company  at  Lenoir, 
N.  C,  and  Mr.  J.  M.  Rogers,  wholesale  hardware  mer- 
chant at  Winston,  N.  C,  have  all  seen  the  rise  and  pro- 
gress of  Synodical  ■  Missions  from  the  beginning,  and 
through  their  wise  counsel  and  faithful  efforts  as  mem- 
bers of  the  committee,  the  work  has  been  greatly  strength- 
ened and  advanced.  These  men  and  many  other  members 
of  the  committee,  both  the  church  and  the  State  have  de- 
lighted to  honor. 

Dr.  McNeill  was  appointed  by  the  General  Assembly 
of  1895  on  the  Committee  to  represent  the  Southern  Pres- 
byterian Church  in  the  Pan-Presbyterian  Council,  which 
met  in  Glasgow,  Scotland,  in  1886,  and  he  has  served  as 
a  senator  from  his  county  in  the  State  Legislature,  ren- 
dering most  valuable  service  as  a  member  of  that  body. 

Mr.  B.  F.  Hall  has  been  in  close  touch  with  the  interests 
of  Presbyterianism  for  many  years,  and  by  his  wise  coun- 
sel, godly  example,  and  generous  gifts  he  has  been  a  tower 
of  strength  to  the  church,  especially  in  Eastern  North 
Carolina.  He  was  elected  by  the  Synod  of  North  Caro- 
lina a  director  of  LTnion  Theological  Seminary  in  Virginia 
in  1884.  and  he  still  holds  that  honorable  position. 

Mr.  J.  G.  Hall  is  a  well-known  business-man  and  influ- 
ential elder  in  the  western  part  of  the  State.  He  takes  a 
deep  interest  in  public  affairs,  and  as  a  public  speaker 
and  a  leader  of  men  he  exerts  a  wide  influence  for  the 
upbuilding  and  welfare  of  both  the  church  and  the  State. 

Mr.  J.  M.  Rogers  is  a  son  of  a  minister,  and  knows  the 
needs  of  a  minister,  and  he,  together  with  other  members 
of  the  Winston  church,  has  done  a  great  deal  for  the 
pioneer  ministers  of  Stokes  county,  and  for  the  synodical 
work  in  that  county  and  surrounding  country.  Mr. 
Rogers  has  been  a  faithful  and  punctual  attendant  upon 
the  meetings  of  the  committees,  and  his  advice  and  coun- 
sel are  always  valuable. 


io6  The  PRESJiVTEKiAN  Church 

The  limits  of  this  book  will  not  permit  us  to  speak  at 
length  of  the  noble  labors  of  other  members  of  this  com- 
mittee, some  of  whom  have  pa.^sed  away,  such  men  as 
General  Scales,  General  Barringer,  the  Oates ;  Messrs. 
Graham  and  Young,  Major  Bingham,  the  Rev.  Mr. 
Shields,  Rev.  Dr.  Alurray,  the  Rankins  and  the  grand 
work  and  godly  life  and  influence  of  the  Rev.  Dr. 
McClure.  In  the  Rev.  A.  D.  ^^IcClure,  D.  D.,  the  synod 
has  found  a  most  worthy  successor  to  Dr.  Hoge,  as  chair- 
man of  Home  Missions  for  Wilmington  Presbytery  and 
ex  officio  a  member  of  the  Synodical  Committee.  He 
has  not  only  kept  going  the  large  missionary  enterprises 
which  had  been  set  on  foot  in  his  Presbytery  prior  to 
his  election,  but  has  reached  out  into  other  fields  and  made 
a  most  useful  member  of  the  synod's  committee.  Under 
his  wise  direction  the  synod  has  been  enabled  to  assist 
in  doing  a  great  'work  in  Brunswick,  Columbus  and 
Duplin  counties,  a  most  important  work  for  every  reason, 
and  especially  now  that  this  section  of  the  State  is  making 
such  rapid  progress  in  the  wonderful  success  of  its  truck- 
ing interests,  and  many  persons  are  moving  into  the  coun- 
try, who  could  be  and  were  reached  by  our  church,  and 
many  of  them  have  been  added  to  its  membership. 

We  might  speak,  also,  if  it  were  possible,  of  a  great 
number  of  noble  men  who  were  never  members  of  the 
committee,  but  who  have  been  prominent  promoters  and 
helpers  of  the  great  cause  of  Home  Missions — such  men 
as  B.  G.  Worth,  George  Allen,  S.  P.  Alexander,  J.  M. 
Mclver,  George  W.  Watts,  P.  B.  Fetzer,  J.  F.  Love,  J.  D. 
Murphy  and  many  others.  But  in  closing  this  history  of 
the  development  of  the  church  and  especially  of  the  rise 
and  progress  of  Synodical  Missions  in  North  Carolina  it 
seems  but  right  and  proper  to  speak  somewhat  at  length 
and  in  particular  of  the  life  and  labors  of  the  Rev.  Wil- 


In  North  Carolina.  107 

Ham  Black,  general  evangelist,  who  is  also  a  member  of 
the  Synodical  Committee. 

The  Rev.  Mr.  Black  has  been  prominently  connected 
with  Synodical  Missions  since  January,  1893,  and  for  the 
greater  part  of  the  time  since  then  he  has  been  the  cen- 
tral figure  in  the  evangelistic  field,  to  which  all  eyes  have 
been  turned,  and  he  is  perhaps  more  widely  known  to-day 
than  any  other  Presbyterian  minister  in  North  Carolina. 
It  would  be  impossible  for  any  biographer  or  historian 
to  place  upon  record  that  which  would  convey  an 
adequate  conception  of  the  vast  and  far-reaching  influence 
for  God  and  for  the  uplifting  of  humanity  which  this  one 
man  has  exerted.  If  the  Synodical  Movement  launched 
at  Goldsboro  in  1888  had  accomplished  nothing  more 
than  to  put  Mr.  Black  in  the  field,  it  would  have  proved 
a  great  success,  and  a  w^ise  investment  for  all  the  cost  of 
missions  until  the  present  time.  It  would  be  hard  for 
any  one  who  has  a  proper  conception  of  the  facts  to  be- 
lieve that  God  did  not  specially  raise  up  and  set  apart  this 
brother  to  accomplish  the  special  work  which  he  has  been 
enabled  to  do. 

Mr.  Black  was  born  of  Scotch  parents  near  Maxton,  N. 
C,  and  was  educated  with  the  view  of  making  the  study 
and  practice  of  law  his  life  work.  He  studied  law  under 
**  Dick  and  Dillard,"  of  Greensboro,  N.  C,  and  was  duly 
licensed  and  began  the  practice  of  law  in  1881.  He 
rapidly  arose  in  the  profession,  and  at  the  end  of  ten  or 
twelve  years  he  became  what  the  world  calls  a  successful 
lawyer,  doing  a  paying  business  and  enjoyinsf  a  large 
and  lucrative  practice.  But  God  intended  him  to  teach 
men  the  Divine  law,  and  in  1893  he  yielded  himself  to  the 
unceasing  demands  of  his  Lord  and  of  his  conscience,  and 
on  Jan.  i,  1893,  he  was  licensed  to  preach  the  Gospel  by 
Fayetteville  Presbytery,  and  during  the  same  year  he  was 


io8  The  Presbyterian  Church 

ordained  by  Mecklenburg  Presbytery  and  immediately 
employed  by  the  Presbytery  and  the  Synod ical  Commit- 
tee as  a  local  evangelist  for  Union  and  Anson  counties. 
He  remained  in  this  field  just  one  year,  and  the  Lord 
crowned  his  labors  with  wonderful  success,  giving  him 
the  joy  of  witnessing  more  than  700  conversions,  and  of 
seeing  more  than  100  communicants  added  to  the  Presby- 
terian church. 

On  January  16,  1894,  he  was  elected  superintendent  of 
Synodical  Home  ]\lissions,  which  at  that  time  included 
the  office  and  the  work  of  general  evangelist,  and  in  Jan- 
uary, 1897,  he  began  to  give  his  whole  time  to  evangelistic 
work,  and  except  for  a  short  interval  in  1898,  when  he 
was  again  superintendent,  he  has  continued  until  the 
present  moment  to  give  his  whole  time  to  the  work  of 
general  evangelist  for  the  synod.  And  in  the  mean  time 
he  has  conducted  several  successful  meetings  in  other 
States,  with  blessed  results ;  and,  moreover,  Mr.  Black 
was  the  originator  of  the  idea  of  Biblical  institutes,  so 
many  of  which  have  been  held  in  this  State,  he  having 
offered  the  resolution  that  provided  for  the  first  one,  held 
at  Red  Springs,  N.  C,  over  which  he  presided,  and  a  simi- 
lar one  held  at  Gastonia  in  1893.  He  was  also  assisted  by 
the  splendid  serviced  of  the  Rev.  E.  E.  Gillespie,  also  re- 
sponsible for  the  origin,  conduct  and  magnificent  success 
of  the  Evangelistic  and  Biblical  Institute  held  at  Davidson 
College  in  1902.  These  institutes,  besides  helping  the 
thousands  who  attended'  them  to  a  better  understanding  of 
the  Bible  on  every  phase  of  Christian  work,  especially 
emphasized  the  missionary  and  evangelistic  opportunities 
and  responsibilities. 

During  Mr.  Black's  connection  with  Synodical  Home 
Missions  in  North  Carolina,  a  period  of  fourteen  years, 
the  tabulated]  reports  of  his  labors  as  given  from  year  to 


REV.   E.  E.  GILLESPIE. 


In  North  Carolina.  109 

year  will  give  some  idea  of  the  magnitude  of  these  labors. 
The  following  figures  may  not  be  accurate,  but  at  the 
present  time  (1907),  they  are  in  no  wise  exaggerated: 
He  has  held  more  than  4,000  services,  and  on  an  average 
in  about  twenty  counties  a  year.  He  has  witnessed  the 
confession  of  several  thousand  persons,  and  more  than 
4,000  of  these  have  joined  the  Presbyterian  Church,  while 
many  of  the  others  have  joined  churches  of  other  denomi- 
nations. He  has  organized  a  dozen  or  more  Presbjterian 
churches,  and  as  many  Sunday-schools,  and  he  has 
ordained  quite  a  number  of  elders  and  deacons,  besides 
baptizing  adults  and  infants,  and  receiving  from  hun- 
dreds of  heads  of  families  the  pledge  or  promise  to  hold 
family  worship.  He  has  travelled  thousands  of  miles,  has 
made  many  addresses,  held  many  prayer  meetings,  and 
has  done  a  vast  amount  of  office  work ;  and  wherever  he 
has  gone  he  has  been  hailed  with  delight  and  welcomed 
with  joy. 

The  great  success  of  Mr.  Black  has  been  due  in  a  large 
measure  to  his  kind  and  gentle  manners,  his  simple  and 
candid  cordiality,  and  his  intense  earnestness  in  present- 
ing the  truth.  His  style  of  preaching  reminds  one  that 
he  has  never  lost  many  of  the  characteristics  of  the  skilled 
lawyer  presenting  his  case  before  a  jury.  His  message  is 
pointed,  direct  and  earnest,  speaking  rapidly  and  yet  ten- 
derly, producing  in  the  minds  and  hearts  of  his  hearers 
the  feeling  that  his  message  is  one  of  love  combined  with 
authority.  Moreover,  Mr.  Black  knows  men,  and  how  to 
adapt  himself  to  the  peculiarities  and  needs  of  men, 
having  had  abundant  opportunity  in  the  practice  of  law 
as  well  as  in  preaching  the  Gospel  to  study  all  classes  and 
shades  of  humanity.  He  is  a  most  congenial  companion 
and  a  ''brother  beloved"  with  his  close  friends,  and  with 
all  who  know  him  well,  and  upon  him  the  entire  Synod  of 
North  Carolina  invoked  its  loving  benediction. 


no  The  Presbyterian  Church 

'*  His  bow  still  abides  in  strength,  and  the  arms  of  his 
hands  are  made  strong  by  the  hands  of  the  mighty  God  of 
Jacob/'  who  has  honored  him  and  blessed  him  and  given 
him  many  stars  for  his  crown. 

The  great  work  which  the  Rev.  William  Black  has 
done,  he  feels,  is  in  a  large  measure  due  to  the  assistance 
of  his  singers,  not  only  to  Rev.  A.  K.  Pool,  who  sang  so 
sweetly  till  his  death  in  1899,  but  to  Mr.  Andrew  Burr, 
his  present  helper,  and  many  have  no  doubt  been  sung 
into  the  kingdom  by  these  sweet  singers,  who  might  not 
otherwise  have  been  reached. 

Mr.  Burr  is  a  native  of  Chatham,  New  Brunswick, 
Canada,  and  was  elected  a  ruling  elder  in  the  St.  Andrews 
Church  in  his  city.  He  has  been  with  Mr.  Black,  manag- 
ing the  singing,  since  January,  1904,  and  is  not  only  a 
sweet  singer,  but  knows  how  to  make  the  song  service  a 
power  for  good,  not  only  in  arousing  Christians,  but  in 
reaching  the  unsaved  also.  From  such  services  of  song, 
as  rendered  by  such  men,  it  is  clearly  seen  that  it  is  a 
great  power  that  many  do  not  use,  but  they  also  show 
us  how  to  use  this  force,  after  their  visits  to  our  churches 
are  over. 


MR.    ANDREW    BURR. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

A  Brief  Summary  of  Some  of  the  Results  of  Synodi- 
CAL  Home  Missions  in  North  Carolina. 

Many  of  the  great  enterprises  and  advanced  move- 
ments in  tlie  church  of  the  present  day  may  not  be  at- 
tributed as  direct  results  to  the  great  Synodical  Move- 
ment^ but  at  the  same  time  the  vigorous  prosecution  of 
Synodical  Missions  opened  the  way,  increased  the  interest 
and  gave  an  impetus  to  all  the  great  causes  of  the  church, 
and  made  some  of  these  enterprises  possible.  All  of  the 
great  causes  of  the  church,  in  a  very  great  degree,  have 
kept  pace  in  the  onward  march  with  Home  Missions. 
This  is  especially  true  along  educational  lines.  Wherever 
a  pioneer  evangelist  was  sent  a  mission  day  school  in 
connection  w^th  the  work  was  established,  and  from  some 
of  these  day  schools  splendid  institutions  of  learning  have 
had  their  origin. 

The  Rev.  J.  B.  Shearer,  D.  D.,  the  great  apostle  of 
Church  and  Christian  Education  in  North  Carolina,  began 
with  the  Synodical  Movement  in  1889  to  urge  the  neces- 
sity of  Biblical  training  in  all  Presbyterian  schools,  so  as 
to  make  an  intelligent  scriptural  faith  the  controlling  prin- 
ciple of  our  schools.  In  1890  a  Synodical  Committee  on 
Church  and  Christian  Education  was  appointed,  and  frorfi 
that  day  until  the  present  time  Dr.  Shearer  has  faithfully 
and  efficiently  preached  and  toiled  for  the  great  cause,  and 
his  labors  have  not  been  in  vain.  The  policy,  plan  and 
constitution  of  church  schools  as  promulgated  and  ex- 
p>ounded  by  Dr.  Shearer  gradually  found  favor  through- 


112  The  Presbyterian  Church 

out  the  church,  and  under  the  guidance  of  his  wisdom  was 
finally  adopted  by  the  General  Assembly  as  the  policy  and 
plan  of  the  whole  Southern  Presbyterian  Church.  This 
great  cause  has  now  assumed  vast  proportions,  and  its  in- 
fluence for  building  up  Christ's  Kingdom  is  simply  enor- 
mous. 

In  connection  with  Church  and  Christian  Education, 
and  we  may  say  as  a  result  of  the  Home  Mission  Move- 
ment, a  strong  effort  was  inaugurated  in  1900  to  raise 
within  five  years  the  magnificent  sum  of  $300,000  as  a 
twentieth  century  fund  for  the  cause  of  Christian  educa- 
tion. The  synod  entered  heartily  into  the  movement,  and 
appointed  as  a  supervisory  committee  the  Rev.  R.  E. 
Caldwell,  Rev.  A.  R.  Shaw  and  Mr.  J.  M.  Mclver,  to  act 
conjointly  with  the  Rev.  J.  W.  Stagg,  D.  D.,  and  Mr. 
George  W.  Watts,  the  Assembly's  committee. 

In  1901  the  synod  called  the  Rev.  Dr.  Stagg  as  field 
secretary,  to  raise  the  money,  and  appointed  a  special 
committee,  consisting  of  Rev.  E.  W.  Smith,  D.  D.,  Rev. 
J.  M.  Rose,  D.  D.,  Rev.  J.  M.  Wells,  D.  D.,  and  Ruling 
Elders  George  W.  Watts  and  J.  M.  Rogers,  to  act  in 
conjunction  with  the  Supervisory  Committee  and  conduct 
the  work.  In  1902  the  synod  appointed  an  executive  com- 
mittee, to  take  the  place  of  the  Supervisory  Committee 
and  to  act  in  connection  with  the  Presbyterial  committees, 
consisting  of  Rev.  E.  W.  Smith,  D.  D.,  Rev.  E.  C.  Mur- 
ray, D.  D.,  Rev.  E.  R.  Leyburn,  and  Elders  E.  P.  Whar- 
ton and  J.  M.  Mclver.  This  committee  had  charge  of  the 
conduct  of  the  work  until  its  close,  and  the  report  in  1906 
showed  that  the  sum  of  $113,789  had  been  raised  for  the 
cause  of  education. 

In  1889,  immediately  after  the  inauguration  of  Synod- 
ical  Home  Missions,  the  synod's  Orphan's  Home  was 
established.     The  founding  of  this  institution  was  one  of 


In  North  Carolina.  113 

th€  most  important  steps  ever  taken  by  the  Synod  of 
North  Carohna.  It  resuUed  in  a  glorious  success,  to  the 
honor  of  God  and  to  the  lasting  good  of  the  church  and 
to  humanity.  The  Rev.  Jethro  Rumple,  D.  D.,  was  chair- 
man of  the  commission,  appointed  in  1888,  to  formulate 
plans  for  the  establishment  and  conduct  of  the  Home,  and 
the  plans  submitted  by  him  were  adopted,  and  a  Board  of 
Regents  were  appointed  to  have  the  management  of  the 
Home. 

The  original  Board  of  Regents  consisted  of  the  follow- 
ing persons:  Rev.  J.  Rumple,  D.  D.  (president),  Rev.  W. 
E.  Mclllwaine,  Rev.  D.  I.  Craig,  Rev.  D.  D.  McBryde, 
Hon.  A.  M.  Scales,  Hon.  D.  G.  Fowle,  George  E.  Wilson, 
Esq.,  George  Chadbourn,  Esq.,  Mr.  John  E.  Oates  and 
Mr.  G.  M.  Love. 

A  detailed  account  or  minute  history  of  the  inaugura- 
tion of  this  Home,  first  at  Charlotte  and  afterwards  at 
Barium  Springs ;  of  the  many  perplexing  problems  and 
difficulties  solved  and  overcome  by  Dr.  Rumple,  the 
Board  and  the  superintendent.  Rev.  R.  W.  Boyd,  of  the 
marvellous  providences  of  God,  and  the  wonderful  success 
of  the  institution,  and  last,  but  not  least,  of  the  laborious 
work,  the  patient  thought  and  tender  care  of  Dr.  Rumple 
in  his  long  connection  with  the  Home,  would  read  like 
a  thrilling  romance  if  it  were  written.  For  fifteen  years 
the  management  of  this  institution  was  the  burden  of  the 
great  heart  of  Dr.  Rumple,  and  to  this  work  he  gave  his 
best  thought,  his  wise  counsel  and  noble  eiforts,  and  its 
success  was  the  joy  of  the  closing  years  of  his  life.  The 
Home  has  never  had  but  one  superintendent,  the  Rev.  R. 
W.  Boyd,  who  is  honored  and  beloved  by  the  synod  and 
the  150  orphan  children  under  his  care.  Through  the 
long  years  of  his  service  he  has  proven  himself  to  be  the 
right  man  in  the  right  place.    The  Home  as  it  now  stands 


114  The  Presbyterian  Church 

is  comprised  of  nine  main  buildings  on  250  acres  of  land, 
and  the  whole  property  is  worth  more  than  $50,000. 

Among  the  liberal  donors  to  the  Home  and  after  whom 
some  of  the  buildings  are  named,  the  names  of  George  W. 
Watts,  Mrs.  S.  P.  Lees,  Mr.  S.  P.  Alexander,  Mr.  J.  C. 
Burroughs,  Judge  Howard,  Mr.  Phillips,  Mr.  Carson 
and  others  will  never  cease  to  be  gratefully  remembered. 

Schools  Under  Church  Control. 

At  the  head  of  the  list  stands  Davidson  College,  which 
has  always  been  owned  and  controlled  by  Presbyteries 
and  synods,  and  which  can  by  no  means  be  classed  as  a 
result  of  the  Synodical  Home  Mission  Movement,  and  yet 
it  has  been  greatly  strengthened,  helped  and  encouraged 
by  the  movement;  and  the  same  may  be  said  of  Peace 
Institute,  at  Raleigh,  which  is  owned  by  Presbyterians, 
if  it  is  not  under  the  direct  control  of  the  church. 

The  Charlotte  and  Statesville  Female  Colleges  and  the 
Southern  Presbyterian  College  and  Conservatory  of 
Music  at  Red  Springs,  N.  C. ;  all  three  of  them,  as  dis- 
tinctive church  schools,  were  founded  in  1896,  and  are 
owned  and  controlled  by  the  Presbyteries  in  whose 
bounds  they  are  located.  These  three  female  colleges  can 
scarcely  be  surpassed  in  their  equipment  for  furnishing 
a  thorough  education  on  such  terms  that  it  may  be  in 
reach  of  all.  Any  attempt  here  to  write  the  history  of 
each  of  these  schools  or  to  advertise  their  merits  would 
be  inadequate. 

The  history,  however,  of  the  origin  of  the  College  at 
Red  Springs  was  in  connection  with  an  effort  on  the  part 
of  Fayetteville  Presbytery  to  reopen  the  old  Floral  Col- 
lege as  a  high  school  for  girls.  Only  a  portion  of  the 
necessary  amount  of  money  could  be  raised,  and  in  the 
spring  of  1895  the  Presbytery  invited  other  points  or 


REV.  S.  M.  RANKIN. 


In  North  Carolina.  115 

places  in  the  Presbytery  to  submit  bids  for  the  location 
of  the  school. 

On  August  15,  1895,  the  Rev.  S.  M.  Rankin,  who  at 
that  time  was  pastor  of  the  Red  Springs  Church,  called  a 
mass  meeting  of  the  citizens  of  the  place  to  consider  the 
matter,  and  about  fifteen  men  assembled,  and  one  man 
offered  to  give  $100  as  a  beginning,  and  Mr.  Rankin  was 
instructed  to  prosecute  a  canvass  for  the  location  of  the 
school  at  Red  Springs. 

At  the  next  meeting  of  Presbytery,  September  17,  1895, 
the  bid  from  Red  Springs,  amounting  to  four  acres  of 
land,  twenty-five  hundred  dollars  in  cash  or  material  and 
one-sixth  interest  in  certain  fair  ground  property,  was 
accepted  by  the  Presbytery,  and  the  Committee  on  Church 
and  Christian  Education  was  authorized  to  select  the  site 
and  to  canvass  the  churches  for  additional  funds. 

In  October,  1895,  the  site  offered  by  Dr.  J.  L.  McMillan 
was  selected  as  the  location,  and  the  Rev.  Mr.  Rankin  was 
appointed  to  canvass  the  churches  of  Presbytery. 

In  March,  1896,  Mr.  Rankin  reported  $5,000  raised, 
and  also  submitted  plans  and  specifications  for  the  first 
building,  which  were  accepted,  and  Mr.  Rankin  was 
elected  chairman  and  treasurer  of  the  Building  Commit- 
tee. A  Board  of  Trustees  was  appointed,  and  in  June, 
1896,  the  Rev.  C.  G.  Vardell  was  elected  to  take  charge 
of  the  school.  The  school  opened  September  30,  1896, 
with  an  enrollment,  during  the  year,  of  112.  Under  the 
splendid  management  of  Dr.  Vardell  the  institution  has 
steadily  advanced  to  the  forefront  of  female  colleges 
in  the  South,  and  the  plant  has  been  enlarged  until  the 
property  is  now  worth  at  least  $100,000.  At  the  present 
time  (1907)  there  is  a  faculty  of  twenty-five  or  thirty 
teachers  and  an  enrollment  of  more  than  300  young  lady 
students. 


ii6  The  Presbyterian  Church 

The  "  Lees-McRae  Institute" — the  girls'  department  at 
Banner  Elk,  in  Watauga  county,  N.  C,  and  the  boys' 
department  at  Plum  Tree,  in  Mitchell  county,  N.  C. — is 
one  of  the  direct  results  or  products  of  Synodical  Home 
Missions. 

The  pioneer  evangelist  in  these  counties  was  the  Rev. 
R.  P.  Pell,  who  did  much  in  laying  the  foundation  for 
schools  and  in  fostering  the  desire  among  the  people  for 
more  and  higher  education.  Mr.  Pell  was  succeeded  in 
1895  by  Messrs.  Edgar  Tufts,  L.  E.  Bostian  and  E.  D. 
Brown,  in  Watauga  county,  and  Mr.  L.  A.  McLaurin,  in 
Mitchell  county.  These  brethren  had  not  yet  completed 
their  seminary  course,  and  they  did  splendid  work  during 
the  summer  months  in  this  field. 

In  1897  the  Rev.  Edgar  Tufts  took  charge  of  the  field, 
and  to  him  is  due  the  splendid  success  and  wonderful 
progress  of  the  institution  at  Banner  Elk,  over  which  he 
still  presides. 

In  1901  the  Rev.  J.  P.  Hall  became  associated  with  the 
institution,  and  through  his  splendid  labors  the  boys'  de- 
partment has  been  transferred,  built  up  and  established 
at  Plum  Tree,  in  Mitchell  county.  Mr.  Hall  has  charge 
of  this  department. 

The  following  brief  outline  of  the  origin  and  history  of 
the  institution  is  here  given  in  the  language  of  the  Rev. 
Edgar  Tufts: 

"This  school  had  its  beginning  in  a  small  summer  mis- 
sion school  taught  by  two  ladies  for  four  months,  with 
no  guaranteed  salary  except  their  expenses.  The  next 
step  was  when  the  evangelist  in  charge  of  the  field  gath- 
ered around  an  open  fire  in  his  own  room  a  handful  of  the 
largest  and  most  advanced  pupils  and  taught  them  free  of 
charge  for  several  months  during  the  winter  of  1898.  The 
next  step  was  the  following  fall,  when  the  matter  of  build- 


In  North  Carolina.  117 

ing  a  high  school  at  Banner  Elk  was  taken  up  at  a  mid- 
week prayer  meeting  and  subscriptions  received  to  the 
extent  of  some  $250  in  lumber  and  work. 

'The  enterprise  having  thus  been  started  at  home,  many 
appeals  through  papers,  through  letters  and  in  person 
wer€  made  for  help  with  which  to  finish  the  buildings. 
After  months  of  hard  work,  during  which  a  debt  was 
never  made,  the  dormitory  and  a  two-room  academy 
building  were  ready  for  use. 

'The  school  was  first  known  as  the  ''Elizabeth  iMcRae 
Institute,"  in  honor  of  Mrs.  E.  A.  ]\IcRae.  The  name  was 
afterwards  changed  to  the  Lees-McRae  Institute,  in  honor 
of  Mrs.  S.  P.  Lees.  These  ladies  were  liberal  helpers  and 
doners  in  the  founding  of  the  institute 

'The  first  session  of  the  boarding  department  was  be- 
gun in  the  fall  of  1900  with  about  a  dozen  girls  in  the 
dormitory  and  two  teachers.  At  the  close  of  the  second 
year  it  was  evident  that  more  class  room  would  have  to  be 
provided  for.  A  new  academy  was  started  at  once.  This 
building  was  begun  like  the  dormitory,,  with  a  subscrip- 
tion at  home. 

"From  time  to  time  a  few  acres  of  land  were  added, 
sometimes  as  donations  and  sometimes  by  purchase,  until 
to-day  the  school  owns  forty-seven  acres,  through  which 
the  turbulent  water  of  the  Elk  river  flow.  Not  only  does 
this  stream  afford  picturesque  scenery  and  delightful  trout 
fishing,  but  it  has  in  its  bosom  a  magnificent  water-power, 
which  some  day  will  doubtless  be  used  to  light  the  school 
with  electricity. 

"From  the  very  beginning  the  Bible  has  been  a  daily 
text-book  for  every  pupil  in  the  school.  The  industrial 
features  have  also  been  emphasized  and  enlarged  until 
to-day  this  course  embraces  cooking,  sewing  and  basketry. 
The  catechisms  of  the  Presbyterian  Church  have  also  been 


tt8  The  Presbyterian  Church 

so  constantly  brought  to  the  attention  of  the  students  that 
over  one  hundred  girls  have  been  awarded  Bibles  and  Tes- 
taments for  reciting  them.  The  Christian  influence  has 
been  such  that  over  thirty  students  have  united  with  the 
church  while  in  school. 

In  1903  two  important  changes  were  made:  One  of 
them  was  the  change  in  the  time  of  the  sessions,  so  that 
the  school  now  begins  in  the  spring  and  closes  at  Christ- 
mas. The  object  in  this  change  was  first  to  eliminate  the 
three  severe  winter  months,  and  thereby  reduce  the  run- 
ning expenses,  and,  second,  to  breakdown  as  far  as  possi- 
ble, by  running  the  school  in  the  summer,  the  too  frequent 
custom  in  the  mountains  of  putting  the  girls  on  the  farm 
as  soon  as  they  are  large  enough  to  handle  a  hoe.  The 
other  change  was  moving  the  boys'  department  to  Plum 
Tree  in  the  adjoining  county. 

"The  enrollment  in  these  two  departments  during  1906 
was  upwards  of  275  students,  five  of  whom  are  already 
candidates  for  the  ministry." 

The  great  success  and  splendid  work  of  Rev.  Edgar 
Tufts  with  the  Lees-McRae  Institute  has  been  made  pos- 
sible by  the  self-sacrificing  and  painstaking  work  of  Mrs. 
E.  A.  MacRae,  of  Maxton,  N.  C.  This  lady  was  a  mem- 
ber of  Centre  Church,  near  Maxton,  and  at  her  own  cost 
and  charges,  without  one  cent  of  reimbursement,  taught 
several  months  during  the  first  years  of  our  work  in 
Watauga  county  when  Rev.  R.  P.  Pell  was  there;  and 
just  after  he  left,  and  by  her  lovely  Christian  life,  her 
love  for  souls,  and  her  devotion  to  her  Master,  won  the 
hearts  of  those  splendid,  but  rather  poor  people,  of  that 
section,  gave  them  a  taste  and  love  for  better  things,  and 
thus,  in  her  modest  way,  laid  the  foundations  for  the 
splendid  schools  which  have  since  received  from  her  and 
others,  under  the  excellent  management  of  Rev.  Mr. 
Tufts,  the  money  to  carry  them  on  and  build  them  up. 


In  North  Carolina.  119 

There  are  a  large  number  of  other  excellent  schools 
which  are  the  direct  results  of  Synodical  Missions,  but  a 
history  of  their  origin  cannot  be  given  here.  In  nearly 
every  instance,  however,  these  schools  originated  through 
the  self-sacrificing  labors  of  some  godly  woman  in  teach- 
ing a  day  mission  school  under  the  direction  of  the  com- 
mittee or  some  evangelist. 

There  is  the  "J^^^s  Sprunt  Institute"  at  Kenansville, 
N.  C,  named  in  honor  and  memory  of  the  late  Rev. 
James  M.  Sprunt,  D.  D.,  and  founded  by  Mr.  Henry 
Farrior  and  Dr.  James  W.  Blount  and  others,  in  1896, 
which  is  a  Female  School  under  the  direct  control  of 
Wilmington  Presbytery.  It  has  been  a  wonderful  suc- 
cess, and  is  a  strong  arm  for  mission  work  in  eastern 
North  Carolina.  It  has  at  present  more  than  one  hundred 
pupils,  and  more  than  half  of  them  are  boarders.  Mr. 
J.  O.  Carr,  of  Wilmington,  N.  C,  is  the  President  of  the 
Board  of  Trustees,  and  for  a  time  the  Rev.  R.  V.  Lancas- 
ter had  charge  of  the  school.  The  present  principal  is 
Miss  Blanche  Boyd,  formerly  a  teacher,  matron  and 
editor  of  the  Synod's  Orphans'  Home  at  Barium  Springs, 
North  Carolina. 

The  splendid  '^Westminster  School''  at  Brittain,  N.  C, 
established  largely  through  the  efforts  of  the  Rev.  R.  C. 
Morrison,  and  under  the  fine  management  of  Rev.  W.  R. 
Minter,  in  the  providence  of  God,"  has  educated  many 
poor  boys  and  girls  and  fitted  them  for  usefulness  in  life, 
and  is  a  missionary  agency  of  great  power  and  influence 
in  King's  Mountain  Presbytery. 

The  school  at  Canton  under  the  management  of  Rev. 
J.  C.  Hardin,  and  the  schools  at  Crabtree,  Dillsboro,  Rob- 
binsville,  Barnardsville,  Hughes  and  other  places  in  the 
western  part  of  the  State. 

The    Elise    High    School    at    Hemp,  the    Englewood 


I20  The  Presbyterian  Church 

School  at  Albemarle,  the  Stanly  Hall  School,  and  the 
Clarkton  High  School,  besides  a  great  number  of  mis- 
sion schools  of  lower  grade.  These  schools  are  educating 
scores  and  hundreds  of  girls  and  boys  all  over  the  State, 
and  their  influence  is  immense  and  far-reaching  for  the 
glory  of  God  and  the  uplifting  of  humanity. 

In  1888  the  Rev.  Dr.  Rumple  presented  a  paper  to 
synod  on  'Tarochial  Schools,"  urging  the  churches,  when- 
ever practicable,  to  establish  parochial  schools  for  pri- 
mary and  classical  instruction  under  their  own  super- 
vision, and  at  the  same  time  the  Rev.  Dr.  Mclllwain  sub- 
mitted the  annual  report  on  education.  In  these  papers 
not  a  single  mission  school  is  mentioned  or  reported,  and 
while  Peace  Institute,  the  Charlotte,  Statesville  and  Floral 
colleges  are  mentioned  as  Presbyterian  schools,  Davidson 
College  is  the  only  school  mentioned  as  being  under  direct 
church  control. 

At  the  present  time  (1907),  after  a  lapse  of  nineteen 
years,  the  great  number  of  schools  and  colleges  now  in 
operation  and  under  church  control  will  show  how  great 
have  been  the  results  and  the  progress  along  educational 
lines. 

In  1888  there  were  five  Presbyteries,  122  ministers,  262 
churches  and  22,553  communicants  in  the  synod.  In  1907 
there  are  eight  Presbyteries,  179  ministers,  423  churches, 
and  39,788  communicants. 

In  1888  the  aggregate  amount  of  funds  raised  in  the 
synod  was  $144,692,  and  in  1907  the  amount  was  more 
than  $344,913. 

In  1888,  according  to  the  reports  given  by  the  stated 
clerks  of  the  Presbyteries,  there  were  thirty-one  counties 
in  the  State  without  a  single  Presbyterian  church,  and 
fifteen  counties  with  one  church  in  each,  making  a  total 
of  forty-six  counties  practically  without  Presbyterianism 
within  their  borders. 


In  North  Carolina.  121 

There  is  a  confusion  in  the  numbers  given  of  the  va- 
cant counties,  from  time  to  time,  and  this  confusion  arises 
from  the  fact  that  in  some  of  the  counties  given  "with 
one  church  each/'  there  was  only  a  church  building  and 
not  an  organization ;  and  besides,  it  is  not  easy  to  ascer- 
tain the  exact  time  of  the  organization  of  some  of  the 
new  churches.  There  were  really  more  than  thirty-one 
counties  without  a  Presbyterian  organization  in  1888,  and 
it  is  not  claimed  that  the  Synodical  Movement  has  done 
all  the  organizing  and  aggressive  mission  work  since 
then,  but  it  has  done  much  of  it,  and  has  stimulated  Pres- 
byteries and  individuals  to  activity,  which  have  brought 
about  the  great  changes  since  the  Movement  began.  As 
nearly  as  can  be  ascertained,  when  the  Synodical  Mission 
work  was  begun,  there  were  no  organized  Presbyterian 
churches  in  the  following  counties,  viz. :  Alleghany,  Ashe, 
Bertie,  Brunswick,  Camden,  Carteret,  Clay,  Cherokee, 
Chowan,  Currituck,  Dare,  Gates,  Graham,  Greene,  Hyde, 
Hertford,  Jackson,  Johnston,  Jones,  Madison,  Martin, 
Mitchell,  Northampton,  Onslow,  Pamlico,  Perquimans, 
Person,  Pitt,  Polk,  Stokes,  Swain,  Tyrrell,  Watauga, 
Washington,  Yadkin,  and  Yancey,  making  a  total  of  thir- 
ty-six. In  the  counties  of  Halifax,  Lenoir,  Pasquotank, 
and  Stanly,  the  single  organizations  were  new  and  ex- 
ceedingly weak,  and  in  about  thirteen  other  counties 
there  was  but  one  church  only  in  each,  making  a  sum 
total  of  about  fifty-three. 

Since  1888,  to  the  beginning  of  1907,  there  have  been 
reported  to  the  Synod  the  organization  of  187  new 
churches  in  the  State.  There  are  now  (1907)  eight  Pres- 
byteries, 186  ministers,  428  churches,  and  40,750  com- 
municants. 

The  counties  without  a  Presbvterian  church  within  the 


122  The  Presbyterian  Church 

State  at  the  present  time  are  thirteen  in  mimber,  and  are 
as  follows:  Bertie,  Camden,  Chowan,  Currituck,  Dare, 
Gates,  Greene,  Hertford,  Northampton,  Pamlico,  Per- 
quimans, Tyrrell  and  Washington. 

In  1888  there  were  six  Presbyterial  evangelists  within 
the  bounds  of  the  synod  giving  their  whole  time  to  the 
work,  while  there  were  perhaps  as  many  more  ministers 
giving  a  part  of  their  time  to  evangelistic  work.  In  1907, 
according  to  the  last  reports  from  the  Presbyteries,  there 
were  21  evangelists  at  work  in  the  Presbyteries,  and  the 
superintendent  of  Synodical  Missions  reported  27  minis- 
ters as  having  served  regularly  71  small  churches  and  70 
mission  points;  1,389  persons  made  a  public  profession  of 
faith  during  the  year,  and  708  of  these  joined  the  Pres- 
byterian church."  In  addition  to  these  ministers,  there  is 
a  great  host  of  laymen  and  teachers,  male  and  female, 
w^ho  are  engaged  in  evangelistic  work,  especially  during 
the  summer  months,  teaching  and  preaching  the  Gospel 
throughout  the  State. 

In  1888  Biblical  institutes,  mission  conferences  and 
Bible  teachers'  training  schools  and  associations  of  various 
kinds  for  spreading  the  Gospel  were  unknown  in  North 
Carolina;  but  at  the  present  time  they  are  of  common 
occurrence  and  wdthin  the  reach  of  all. 

We  cannot  claim  that  all  these  facts  and  conditions  as 
we  have  them  to-day  are  the  direct  results  of  Synodical 
Home  Missions,  inaugurated  in  1888,  but  many  of  them 
are,  and  in  after  years  it  will  be  seen  more  clearly  than 
now  that  the  great  "movement"  at  that  time  w^as  more  far- 
reaching  and  of  infinitely  more  importance  than  those 
who  participated  in  it  ever  dreamed.  And  there  will  be 
no  backward  step.  The  watchword  is  Onward !  Higher, 
and  yet  higher!  Towards  the  great  possibilities  which 
God  has  set  before  the  church  for  his  own  glory  in  the 
salvation  of  men ! 


In  North  Carolina.  123 

The  promise  to  Joshua  and  the  children  of  Israel  was 
''  Every  place  that  the  sole  of  your  foot  shall  tread  upon, 
that  have  I  given  thee,"  and  every  student  of  Bible  history 
knows  that  not  anything  like  all  of  this  land  was  ever 
taken  by  the  children  of  Israel,  and  why  ?  Simply  because 
God  put  the  condition  in,  that  their  feet  should  tread  upon 
it — that  is,  take  possession  of  it,  and  that  could  not  be 
done  without  a  contest,  a  fight  strong  and  in  some  cases 
long  continued;  this  the  children  of  Israel  did  not  have 
faith  to  undertake. 

The  same  principle  holds  to-day.  The  different  denom- 
inations have  done  much  in  possessing  the  land  for  Christ, 
as  has  been  seen  from  a  perusal  of  these  pages,  the  Pres- 
byterian church  in  North  Carolina  has  done  a  good  part, 
but  we  cannot  fail  to  be  impressed  with  how  little  we 
have  done  in  comparison  with  what  we  ought  to  have  done 
and  what  we  could  easily  have  done.  Such  reflections 
are  sad,  but  instead  of  becoming  discouraged  thereby,  we 
should  be  determined  to  put  forth  more  and  better  directed 
efforts  to  overtake  the  destitutions  in  our  own  land  and 
reach  out  to  other  lands,  too.  Let  no  one  imagine  that 
the  work  is  done,  that  we  can  rest  on  our  oars,  for  in  the 
great  State  of  North  Carolina  there  are  now  (1907)  still 
counties  in  which  we  have  no  Presbyterian  church,  and 
there  are  still  several  counties  in  which  we  have  only  one 
church.  Besides  all  this,  it  is  estimated  that  there  are 
600,000  white  persons  over  the  age  of  ten  years  within 
this  State  that  do  not  belong  to  any  church,  that  make 
no  profession  of  Christianity,  and  when  you  add  to  this 
the  large  number  of  professors  who  are  probably  still  un- 
converted and  the  still  larger  number  of  colored  people 
who  are  out  of  Christ,  it  will  be  seen  at  once  that  there  is 
much  land  still  to  be  possessed. 

When  we  think  of  this  vast  army  marching  down  the 


124  The  Presbyterian  Church 

rough  pathway  of  time  to  eternity's  shore  and  who  have 
not  made  Jesus  their  friend,  and  take  into  account  our 
boasted  and  real  wealth,  our  splendid  opportunities  for 
carrying  and  sending  the  Gospel  to  them,  and  especially 
when  we  consider  that  these  are  not  only  men  and  women 
with  souls,  but  are  our  own  kith  and  kin,  we  stand  amazed 
and  appalled  at  the  spectacle  and  wonder  how  we  can  be 
so  apathetical  and  take  things  so  easy,  but  let  us  not  stand 
by  and  do  nothing,  but  go  ourselves  and  send  others 
before  it  is  too  late.  It  is  too  late  to  reach  the  thousands 
who  died  without  Christ,  it  is  too  late  to  possess  some  of 
the  land  for  our  church,  the  former  opportunities  are  gone 
and  the  latter  have  in  many  cases  been  taken  by  our  sister 
churches  while  we  stood  by  and  offered  resolutions,  re- 
viewed minutes,  tried  cases,  appointed  committees  and 
such  like.  It  is  now  time  to  awaken  and  to  work.  There 
are  splendid  opportunities  still  offering,  and  doors  still 
open.  Do  we  not  hear  the  Lord  saying,  "Whom  shall  I 
send,  and  who  will  go  for  us?"  Let  us  answer,  ''  Here  am 
I ;  send  me."  L^nless  this  call  is  heard,  there  is  another 
message  with  which  we  are  much  concerned,  and  that  is : 
"  Son  of  man,  I  have  made  thee  a  watchman  to  the  house 
of  Israel.  Hear  the  word  at  my  mouth  and  give  them 
warning  from  me.  When  I  say  unto  the  wicked,  thou 
shalt  surely  die  and  thou  givest  him  not  warning  .... 
the  same  wicked  man  shall  die  in  his  iniquity,  but  his 
blood  will  I  require  at  thy  hand." 
God  is  calling  yet;  shall  we  not  go? 


REV.  JAMES  I.  VaSCE,   D.   D. 


EVANGELISTIC   AND    MISSIONARY 
ADDRESSES, 


Rev.  JAMES  I.  VANCE,  D.  D., 
Rev.  WILBUR  CHAPMAN,  D.  D. 
Rev.  S.  L.  MORRIS,  D.  D., 
Rev.  WILLIAM  BLACK. 


FOREWORD. 

History  is  written,  not  only  that  we  may  be  made  ac- 
quainted with  the  facts,  but  that,  knowing  them,  we  should 
be  able  to  make  some  practical  use  of  them,  such  for  ex- 
ample as  imitating  the  noble  examples,  avoiding  the  mis- 
takes, and  of  correcting  in  ourselves  what  has  been  seen 
defective  in  others. 

Trusting  that  the  study  of  the  history  contained  in  this 
volume  may  have  been  thus  beneficial  to  you,  and  with 
a  desire  to  assist  you  in  making  application  of  these  facts, 
this  brief  volume  of  addresses  is  added. 

This  fact,  that  the  Presbyterian  church  has  been  slow 
to  use  the  evangelistic  arm  of  the  church,  is  made  clear  as 
we  have  gone  over  the  record  of  its  work  for  more  than 
one  hundred  years.  It  is  clear  that  our  denomination  has 
suffered  from  this  neglect,  and  equally  clear  that,  where- 
ever  and  whenever  this  important  work  has  been  faith- 
fully done,  there  has  been  a  wonderful  blessing  attending. 

In  the  Bible,  God  says :  "And  he  gave  some  apostles, 
and  some  prophets,  and  some  evangelists  and  some  pas- 
tors and  teachers,  for  the  perfecting  of  the  saints,  for  the 
work  of  the  ministry,  for  the  edifying  of  the  body  of 
Christ."  Yet,  notwithstanding  this  plain  teaching,  that 
evangelists  are  God-given  agencies,  our  church  has  not 
only  made  very  little  use  of  the  same,  but  has  looked  upon 
the  evangelistic  office  as  a  sort  of  secondary  one,  and  the 
work  done  by  evangelists  as  superficial  and  questionable, 
and  the  man  undertaking  to  exercise  the  gift,  as  a  sort 
of  self-appointed  agency,  whereas  in  truth,  the  evange- 
list has  equal  divine  authority  with  apostles,  prophets 
and  pastors. 


128  The  Presbyterian  Church 

In  the  failure  of  the  Presbyterian  church  to  make  full 
use  of  this  most  important  office,  in  our  use  of  the  pas- 
toral office  almost  to  the  exclusion  of  other  agencies,  is 
one  explanation  of  its  comparatively  small  numbers  com- 
pared with  two  other  churches  in  our  State.  Not  only 
so,  but  in  failing  to  use  the  evangelistic  office  together 
with  all  other  helps,  much  desirable  territory  has  been 
taken  possession  of  by  other  denominations,  and  our 
church  thereby  practically  excluded,  souls  have  gone  into 
eternity  from  whole  counties,  without  hearing  one  word 
about  Christ  and  His  blessed  salvation,  fro]n  our  church. 

Perhaps  the  greatest  loss  to  our  church  is  the  evangel- 
istic and  missionary  spirit  and  the  great  reflex  benefit 
that  always  comes  to  the  faithful  church  in  doing  evange- 
listic and  mission  work.  Shall  we  not  azvake,  and  arise 
and  go  and  do  this  great  work? 

These  addresses  are,  therefore,  sent  forth,  with  the 
earnest  hope  that  every  one  who  reads  them  may  be  filled 
with  a  holy  enthusiasm  for  the  salvation  of  souls,  may 
be  able  to  see  the  importance  of  keeping  a  large  supply  of 
evangelists  always  in  the  field,  not  only  in  foreign,  but 
in  our  own  lands,  and  above  all,  that  every  pastor  and 
every  member  may  see  that,  filled  with  this  missionary 
spirit,  there  are  splendid  opportunities  for  doing  this 
work,  in  every  community,  and  seeing  the  opportunities, 
seize  them  and  use  them  at  once.  Every  pastor  can  and 
should  be  both  a  pastor  and  an  evangelist,  and  an  evan- 
gelistic pastor  will  be  sure  to  make  members  with  the 
true  evangelistic  and  mission  spirit  throbbing  within  their 
hearts. 

Use  every  gift,  ministers,  elders,  deacons,  Sunday- 
school  teachers,  private  members,  all  have  them.  Make 
your  life  count,  your  money,  your  musical  talent,  your 
life,  your  all.    Use  it  for  the  Master,  now. 


IF  MY  COUNTRY  WERE  HEATHEN. 

By  Rev.  James  I.  Vance,  D.  D. 

In  the  opening  chapter  of  his  letter  to  the  Church  at 
Rome,  the  greatest  of  missionaries  says:  ''I  am  debtor." 

He  announces  his  obHgations,  he  proclaims  his  liabili- 
ties, he  declares  his  indebtedness,  he  tells  us  what  he  owes. 
He  is  heavily  embarrassed.  But  it  is  not  the  fact  of  debt 
that  distresses  him.  He  is  not  worried  for  fear  he  may 
be  unable  to  meet  his  obligations.  It  is  anxiety  lest 
somehow  he  may  shirk  payment  that  stirs  him.  Having 
announced  the  fact  that  he  is  in  debt,  he  names  his  credi- 
tors. "I  am  debtor  both  to  the  Greeks  and  to  the  Bar- 
barians." How  can  he  owe  these  people  anything?  He 
has  never  had  any  financial  transactions  with  them.  They 
do  not  know  him,  and  he  does  not  know  them.  They 
have  never  heard  of  him,  and  he  can  refer  to  them  only 
by  their  nationality.  To  people  with  whom  he  has  had 
no  business  dealings  and  no  commercial  correspondence 
and  not  the  remotest  personal  contact,  Paul  says,  'T  am 
debtor." 

Having  named  his  creditors,  he  tells  how  he  proposes 
to  meet  his  obligations.  "So  as  much  as  in  me  is,  I  am 
ready  to  preach  the  gospel."  Paul  proposes  to  pay  his 
debts  by  preaching  the  gospel.  It  is  a  strange  method  of 
debt-paying.  It  is  rather  an  airy  way  of  facing  one's 
creditors.  It  is  somewhat  emotional.  It  is  altogether 
too  sentimental  a  plan  of  cancelling  indebtedness.  "Paul, 
you  would  better  get  down  to  a  cash  basis."  Paul,  how- 
ever, has  full  confidence  in  the  currency  he  proposes  to 
ase.     He  is  not  afraid  that  it  will  go  to  protest.    He  has 


130  The  Presbyterian  Church 

no  fear  that  it  will  be  rejected  or  even  questioned.  He 
says,  "I  am  not  ashamed  of  the  gospel  of  Christ,  for  it 
is  the  power  of  God  unto  salvation  to  every  one  that 
believeth." 

Stranger  than  the  list  of  creditors  and  stranger  than 
the  proposed  method  of  payment,  is  the  ground  of  obliga- 
tion. Paul  is  in  debt  because  he  has  been  blessed.  We 
regard  debt  as  the  sequence  of  disaster  or  as  the  result  Df 
limitation.  Paul  has  incurred  debt  by  riches  receive.!. 
He  is  a  debtor  to  preach  the  gospel  because  he  has  re- 
ceived the  gospel.  He  owes  Christ  to  others  because  hi 
has  Christ  himself.  He  must  not  be  selfish.  What  Christ 
is  to  him,  he  can  and  would  be  to  every  human  life. 
Paul  has  no  right  to  sit  still  and  enjoy  the  blessings  of 
redemption,  while  others  are  in  need  of  that  which  he 
can  give. 

This  is  a  brand  new  kind  of  obligation.  It  is  an  un- 
heard of  sort  of  debt.  It  is  the  Christian  view  of  privi- 
lege. It  is  this  conception  of  obligation  that  makes  the 
Christian  church  a  missionary  church. 

The  Church  is  Missionary  or  Nothing. 

Every  Christian  is  a  debtor.  He  is  involved.  Having 
announced,  in  the  opening  chapter  of  this  his  greatest 
epistle,  the  fact  that  he  is  in  debt,  Paul  proceeds  in  the 
following  chapters  to  discuss  the  great  doctrines  of  Chris- 
tianitv — atonement,  justification,  adoption,  sanctification, 
election,  assurance — until  in  the  eighth  chapter  he  is 
ready  for  a  great  conclusion.  What  do  these  doctrines 
amount  to?  This:  'Therefore  we  are  debtors."  Then 
he  continues  the  discussion  until  in  the  fifteenth  chapter  of 
the  epistle  he  is  making  the  practical  application  of  doc- 
trine to  duty  and  says:  'Their  debtors  they  are." 


In  North  Carolina.  131 

The  Christian's  debt  is  fact,  argument,  conchision,  ap- 
pHcation,  all. 

And  it  is  not  the  fact  of  debt  that  should  distress  him, 
nor  the  fear  that  he  may  be  unable  to  meet  his  obliga- 
tions that  should  worry  him,  but  anxiety  lest  he  may 
somehow  shirk  his  responsibilities  that  should  stir  him. 

The  Christian  is  debtor  to  people  he  has  never  seen. 
They  do  not  know  him  and  he  does  not  know  them.  They 
have  never  heard  of  him  and  he  can  refer  to  them  only 
by  their  nationality.  His  creditors  are  Greeks  and  Bar- 
barians^ people  of  culture  and  people  without  culture, 
people  of  China,  of  India,  of  Africa,  of  the  islands  of  the 
sea,  all  people  of  any  land  who  have  never  heard  the  gos- 
pel and  who  do  not  know  of  Christ. 

The  only  way  the  Christian  can  pay  his  debt  is  with 
the  gospel.  He  need  not  be  afraid  that  it  will  be  re- 
jected. It  is  what  the  world  most  needs.  It  is  the  cur- 
rency with  which  God  meets  his  obligations  to  mankind ; 
and  if  the  mighty  God  could  cancel  his  debt  to  the  human 
race  with  the  gospel,  surely  it  will  pay  mine  to  my  fellow 
man.  If  it  was  sufficient  to  make  eternal  payment  of  the 
liabilities  of  Jehovah,  I  need  not  fear  it  will  go  to  protest 
when  offered  in  payment  of  my  obligations. 

My  debt  was  contracted  in  the  same  way  as  Paul's. 
I  am  a  Christian.  Some  one  or  many  made  it  possible 
for  me  to  hear  the  gospel.  It  was  not  because  I  deserved 
it.  I  had  done  nothing  to  merit  such  a  favor.  It  is  all 
of  grace.  I  do  not  know  why  I  was  born  in  a  Christian 
instead  of  a  pagan  or  heathen  land.  I  do  not  know  why  I 
was  born  in  a  Christian  home,  with  parents  who  belonged 
to  the  church  and  whose  first  care  was  that  I  should  know 
and  love  their  Saviour.  You  do  not  know  why  that 
little  daughter  whom  you  love  better  than  your  life  was 
not  born  in  India,  where  ?he  might  have  been  a  child- 


132  The  Presbyterian  Church 

widow  at  the  tender  age  of  twelve  years;  or  in  China, 
where  the  birth  of  a  daughter  is  regarded  as  a  calamity. 
But  somehow  I  know  him,  whom  to  know  aright  is  life 
eternal.  I  have  a  Christian's  view  of  God  and  man  and 
the  world  and  home  and  country  and  heaven,  and  because 
I  have,  I  am  debtor.  Shame  on  me,  if  in  such  a  day  of 
grace,  I  close  tightly-  onf  what  I  have  received,  and 
doubling  down  in  stolid  selfishness,  repudiate  my  debts ! 

Ours  is  a  Christian  Country. 

Because  it  is,  it  is  a  good  country  in  which  to  live. 
The  fact  that  it  is  Christian,  helps  to  make  it  a  profitable 
country  in  which  to  do  business.  Because  it  is  Christian, 
it  is  a  good  country  in  which  to  bring  up  children,  ro 
have  friends,  to  own  property,  to  follow  a  trade,  to  prac- 
tice a  profession.  It  is  far  from  being  perfect,  to  be  sure. 
There  is  much  that  might  be  better.  But  the  bad  is  not 
because  of  the  land's  Christianity.  It  is  in  spite  of  it. 
America  has  social  and  civic  blemishes  because  it  is  not 
as  Christian  as  it  might  be.  It  is  the  Christianity  it  has 
that  makes  it  a  land  wlTere  personal  liberty  is  guaranteed, 
human  life  held  in  high  esteem,  childhood  protected, 
womanhood  respected,  home  honored,  wifehood  and 
motherhood  reverenced,  and  things  that  are  true  and 
beautiful  and  good  celebrated  and  sought. 

Suppose  this  were  not  a  Christian  country.  We  are  so 
accustomed  to  it  that  we  are  wont  to  take  our  Chris- 
tianity as  a  matter  of  course.  Suppose  this  were  a  heathen 
country.  All  countries  are  not  Christian.  There  are 
heathen  countries  in  the  world.  What  if  America  were 
one  of  these  heathen  countries?  What  changes  would 
take  place? 

I  have  never  been  in  a  heathen  land.     I  have  been  in 


In  North  Carolina.  133 

some  American  cities,  where  Christianity  was  at  low  ebb, 
and  where  the  seething  tide  of  wanton  vice  and  immoraU- 
ty  reigned.  I  have  been  through  certain  neglected  sec- 
tions of  great  American  cities  where  the  sodden  wretched- 
ness of  human  misery  rotted  in  damps  of  sin  whose  ig- 
norance bordered  on  the  night  of  heathenism.  But  I  have 
never  been  in  a  city  where  heathenism  reigned.  I  cannot 
answer  the  question  as  well  as  some  missionary  who  has 
seen  a  heathen  city ;  and  seen  it  not  as  the  passing  tourist 
who  sees  only  its  strange  shows  and  curious  sights,  but 
who  has  gone  down  into  its  awful  decay  and  breathed  its 
moral  stench  and  come  into  living  contact  with  its  blank, 
black  despair.  While  I  cannot  answer  the  question  as 
well  as  such  a  missionary,  I  can  at  least  give  a  partial 
answer,  and  name  some  of  the  things  that  must  go  with 
the  loss  of  our  Christianity. 

If  Ours  were  a  Heathen   Country. 

The  first  to  go  would  be  the  churches.  We  should  have 
to  tear  down  every  Christian  church  and  close  every 
Sunday-school  and  wipe  out  every  mission.  We  should 
have  to  raze  the  Young  Men's  Christian  Associations. 
It  would  stop  the  mouth  of  every  preacher  and  abolish 
Sunday  as  a  day  of  worship  and  as  a  day  of  rest.  This 
is  the  first  and  most  evident  change  to  take  place.  The 
churches  and  all  that  they  stand  for  must  go.  This  is  not 
all. 

We  must  close  the  public  schools.  There  are  no  public 
schools  like  ours  in  a  heathen  land.  One  of  our  mis- 
sionary agencies  is  the  day  school.  The  public  schools 
are  not  free  of  faults.  It  is  an  easy  achievement  to  criti- 
cize them,  but  they  are  vastly  better  than  the  conditions 
they  supplanted,  and  they  are  immeasurably  better  than 


134  The  Presbyterian  Church 

no  scliools.  The  preacher  who  declared  the  public  schools 
are  turning  out  a  generation  of  "lusty  young  pagans," 
said  what  very  few  believe  and  what  the  facts  do  not 
warrant.  The  public  school  system  is  an  indirect  product 
of  Christianity.  We  should  lose  it  if  ours  were  a  heathen 
land. 

Then  the  hospitals  would  go.  They  do  not  exist  in 
heathen  lands,  save  as  they  have  been  introduced  by  Chris- 
tianity. The  hospital  is  one  of  the  missionary  enterprises 
of  the  church.  In  India,  Dr.  Scudder  in  charge  of  a 
hospital  to  which  thousands  come  to  be  healed,  is  doing 
three  men's  work.  If  this  were  a  heathen  country,  we 
should  have  to  close  our  hospitals  for  cripples,  for  chil- 
dren, for  the  sick  poor,  for  the  homeless  sick,  for  con- 
tagious diseases,  and  for  the  manifold  diseases  and  ills  to 
which  flesh  is  heir.  We  must  give  up  the  medical  pro- 
fession as  we  have  it  now.  Then  if  a  man  should  fall  on 
the  streets,  there  would  be  no  ambulance  to  carry  him 
and  no  cot  to  receive  him.  Should  your  child  fall  ill, 
there  would  be  no  physician  to  come  with  intelligent  skill 
and  healing  remedies  to  the  little  sufferer ;  but  instead  a 
creature,  with  wild  incantations,  to  add  plague  and  tor- 
ture to  the  already  sickness  of  the  body. 

Next  to  go  would  be  the  orphan  asylums  and  homes 
for  the  aged  and  friendless,  and  institutions  for  the  care 
of  defectives  anH  afflicted.  We  should  have  to  tear  down 
the  homes  for  the  insane,  where  those  who  have  lost  their 
reason  find  a  refuge.  All  of  the  aged  and  helpless  people 
and  the  defenceless  children  must  be  turned  out  in  the 
storm  and  left  on  the  streets  should  ours  become  a  heathen 
land. 

The  next  to  go  would  be  our  organized  charities,  for 
there  is  no  organized  charity  in  a  heathen  city.  We  should 
have  to  relinquish  the  Bureaus  of  Associated  Charities 


In  North  Carolina.  135 

with  their  sane  and  unselfish  work ;  the  charitable  socie- 
ties with  their  splendid  beneficence;  the  industrial  homes 
and  the  rescue  missions,  where  the  man  out  of  work  and 
the  prisoner  fresh  from  serving  his  sentence  may  find 
a  helping  hand ;  the  Florence  Crittenton  Homes,  where 
the  sinning  and  outcast  may  step  through  a  door  of  hope ; 
and  all  those  other  agencies  by  which  the  needy  and  the 
worthless  are  lifted  to  self-help  and  set  on  the  road  to 
industry  and  respectability. 

If  ours  were  a  heathen  land^  we  should  lose  the  city 
governments  under  which  we  live.  It  is  frequentlv  the 
ground  of  just  complaint  because  of  existing  abuses,  but 
compared  with  what  passes  for  government  in  a  heathen 
city,  it  is  as  day  to  dark.  We  denounce  the  system  of 
"graft"  which  obtains  to  a  greater  or  less  extent  in  many 
American  cities,  but  the  ''graft"  we  groan  over  is  a  virtue 
compared  with  the  shameless  extortions  and  brazen  in- 
justices practiced  by  the  heathen  officials  of  a  Chinese 
city.  Civilization  with  its  free  institutions,  its  sense  of 
justice,  its  respect  for  law  and  order  is  the  outcome  of 
Christianity.  With  an  oriental  miscalled  court  of  justice 
and  its  reign  of  terror  instead  of  wdiat  we  have,  property 
values  would  tumble,  trade  would  suffer  irreparable  loss 
and  conditions  of  living  would  become  far  harder. 

This  is  not  all  that  would  happen,  were  America  to  be- 
come heathen.  There  are  invisible  values,  more  precious 
even  than  those  I  have  mentioned,  we  should  lose.  It 
would  take  from  us  our  immortal  hope  and  faith  in 
Christ,  our  Christian  experience  with  all  its  peace  and 
fortitude.  If  America  were  heathen,  we  should  be 
heathen ! 

Recently  1  was  shown  two  photographs.  The  first  was 
of  a  man  suffering  from  club  foot !  He  was  terribly  de- 
formed and  badly  crippled.    His  deformity  was  a  handi- 


136  The  Presbyterian  Church 

cap  that  made  existence  hard  and  work  difficult.  The 
second  was  of  the  same  man,  taken  three  months  later, 
after  he  had  been  healed  by  a  Christian  surgeon.  The 
deformity  was  gone.  The  man  stood  square  and  flat- 
footed  on  two  good  feet,  and  was  ready  to  measure  equal 
with  his  fellows  in  the  race  of  life. 

That  kind  of  relief  is  a  great  boon,  and  that  is  a  part 
of  the  work  of  missions.  Christianity  has  a  gospel  for 
the  body.  But  there  is  a  blessing  infinitely  more  precious. 
It  also  takes  the  deformity  out  of  the  soul.  It  was  spir- 
itual as  well  as  physical  hurts  the  prophet  had  in  mind 
when  he  proclaimed  the  blessings  of  the  gospel  age  and 
cried,  ''Then  shall  the  lame  man  leap  as  an  hart,  and  the 
tongue  of  the  dumb  shall  sing." 

All  this  would  go,  were  ours  a  heathen  country.  You 
could  not  say,  'The  Lord  is  my  Shepherd,  I  shall  not 
want."  You  could  not  pray,  "Our  Father,  which  art  in 
heaven."  You  could  not  teach  the  children,  "God  so 
loved  the  world,  as  to  give  his  only  begotton  Son." 

There  is  one  thing  more  that  would  happen  should 
America  become  heathen.  We  should  have  to  go  to  the 
cemeteries  and  erase  every  inscription  of  hope  from  the 
memorial  stones  over  the  resting  places  of  our  beloved 
dead.  No  minister  v^ould  stand  by  our  side  as  the  clods 
fall  on  the  coffined  dust  and  say,  "But  we  look  for  the 
general  resurrection  and  the  life  of  the  world  to  come." 
There  would  be  no  word  of  hope  and  no  vision  of  home. 
No  invisible  but  real  Friend  would  stand  near  us  in  our 
sorrow  and  whisper  to  listening  faith,  "Let  not  your 
heart  be  troubled.  Ye  believe  in  God,  believe  also  in  me. 
In  my  Father's  house  are  many  mansions."  We,  and  our 
city,  and  our  dead  should  all  be  heathen. 

These  are  some  of  the  things  that  must  take  place.  It 
is  no  fancy  sketch.    The  best  must  go.    Who  would  care 


In  North  Carolina. 


137 


to  remain  in  a  city  so  spoiled?  You  are  saying  that  life 
would  be  intolerable  with  all  these  gone.  So  it  would 
for  those  who  have  once  tasted  the  gospel.  It  is  Chris- 
tianity that  makes  America  a  good  land  in  which  to  live. 
And  America  is  Christian,  because  in  the  march  of  events 
there  were  men  and  women  who  felt  as  Paul  did  and  who 
said :  "We  are  debtors."  "We  have  received  and  we  must 
give."  It  will  be  kept  Christian  only  by  such  people. 
And  the  cities  which  are  now  heathen  will  become  Chris- 
tian only  as  those  who  have  heard  of  Christ  recognize 
their  obligation  and  pay  their  debts. 

The  Missionary  Motive. 

This  is  the  reigning  missionary  motive — 'T  am  debtor." 
No  one  wHo  dwells  in  a  Christian  land  and  is  a  bene- 
ficiary of  Christian  civilization,  whether  he  believe  in  the 
personal  Christ  or  not,  can  repudiate  this  obligation,  with- 
out condemning  himself  at  the  bar  of  God  and  mankind. 
A  man  says  to  me,  'T  do  not  believe  in  Foreign  Mis- 
sions." I  ask  him,  "Then  what  do  you  believe  in?  If 
you  do  not  believe  in  Foreign  Missions,  you  do  not  be- 
lieve in  Christianity,  you  do  not  believe  in  humanity,  you 
do  not  believe  in  philanthrophy,  you  do  not  believe  in 
charity,  you  do  not  believe  in  education,  you  do  not  be- 
lieve in  character,  you  do  not  believe  in  fraternity.  What 
do  you  believe  in?  If  you  do  not  believe  in  Foreign 
Missions,  you  do  not  believe  in  anything  worth  believing 
in."  The  missionary  enterprise  is  the  enterprise  of  man- 
kind. 

There    has    been    a    development    of    the    missionary 
motive. 

There  was  a  time  when,  in  order  to  incite  to  mission- 
ary zeal,  it  was  deemed  necessary  to  pass  sentence  whole- 


138  The  Presbyterian  Church 

sale  on  all  pagan  and  heathen  religions,  and  denounce 
them  as  utterly  bad  and  altogether  false.  The  compara- 
tive study  of  religions  has  shown  us  that,  while  there  is 
a  mighty  difference  between  Christianity  and  the  old-time 
faiths,  nevertheless  pagan  and  heathen  religions  do  pro- 
claim many  noble  sentiments  and  insist  on  the  practice  of 
many  admirable  virtues. 

We  are  finding,  however,  that  to  secure  an  adequate 
missionary  motive  it  is  not  necessary  to  pass  wholesale 
condemnation  on  either  the  heathen  world  or  its  reli- 
gions. There  is  a  higher  and  a  mightier  motive.  It  is 
that  which  stirred  Paul  when  he  cried,  "I  am  debtor." 
The  fact  that  I  have  Christ,  a  divine  Redeemer,  puts  me 
in  debt  to  all  who  have  not  heard  of  Him.  President 
Charles  Cuthbert  Hall,  when  he  returned  from  delivering 
a  course  of  lectures  on  Christianity  in  India,  declared  that 
after  coming  into  contact  with  the  best  culture  of  the 
East,  and  after  taking  into  account  all  that  is  admirable 
in  the  people  and  in  their  religion,  he  came  back  with  a 
stronger  faith  in  Jesus  Christ  as  the  divine  Saviour  of 
men.  with  a  more  solemn  sense  of  responsibility  to  preach 
Him  to  all  men,  and  with  a  deeper  conviction  that  He 
alone  can  meet  the  social,  civil  and  spiritual  needs  of  the 
world. 

What  is  needed  is  for  this  conviction  of  debt  to  the 
heathen  to  take  possession  of  the  church.  It  is  not  mere- 
ly the  sending  out  of  a  few  more  missionaries.  We  need 
to  send  them  and  many  more.  It  is  not  merely  the  giving 
of  a  few  more  dollars.  We  need  to  give  thousands  where 
we  are  giving  hundreds.  But  in  addition  to  all  else, 
there  is  needed  the  moving,  steady,  resistless,  cumula- 
tive momentum  of  the  conviction  that  every  Christian  is 
a  debtor  and  that  he  can  cancel  his  debt  only  with  the 
gospel.     There  need  be  no  fear  that  the  church  may  do 


In  North  Carolina.  139 

loo  much  for  this  cause.  Someone  asked  Phillips  Brooks 
what  he  would  do  were  he  called  to  take  charge  of  a 
church  heavily  involved  in  debt,  greatly  discouraged  and 
rapidly  disintegrating.  He  replied:  "The  first  thing  I 
should  do  would  be  to  take  up  a  collection  for  Foreign 
Missions."  The  church  need  not  be  afraid  it  will  bank- 
rupt itself  in  paying  its  debt  to  the  heathen. 

A  Missionary  Hero. 

Several  years  ago,  on  the  threshold  of  my  ministry, 
I  became  pastor  of  the  Second  Presbyterian  Church  in 
Alexandria,  Va.  On  the  first  Sunday  of  the  New  Year, 
January  ist,  1888,  I  received  into  the  church  a  lad  of 
eleven  years  of  age  named  Frank  Slaymaker.  He  w^as 
the  first  to  unite  with  the  church  on  profession  of  faith 
during  my  ministry  in  Alexandria.  The  incident  was  my 
introduction  to  one  of  the  most  devotedly  Christian  fami- 
lies in  the  parish.  He  had  a  brother,  Henry,  two  years 
his  senior,  who  was  already  in  the  church,  and  a  sister 
a  few  years  older  still.  These  three  with  their  widowed 
mother  made  the  household.  Mrs.  Slaymaker  gave 
her  children  to  the  church  she  did  so  without  reservation. 
The  boys  developed  in  their  Christian  characters  and 
were  active  in  Christian  work.  Henry  was  elected  an 
elder  on  reaching  young  manhood. 

One  of  the  most  interesting  and  important  missions  in 
Africa  is  the  Congo  Mission  of  the  Southern  Presbyterian 
Church,  with  a  church  organization  at  Luebo,  1,000  miles 
from  the  coast,  numbering  over  2,000  members.  It  has 
also  been  the  costliest  mission  of  the  church  both  in 
money  and  workers.  For  two  years  the  Southern  Church 
had  been  praying  for  a  business  manager  for  this  mis- 
sion.    Henry  Slaymaker,  with  a  bright  business  career 


140  The  Presbyterian  Church 

before  him  at  home,  offered  himself  and  was  accepted. 
It  was  deemed  best  that  he  should  be  sent  out  as  an  or- 
dained minister.  He  was  examined  and  ordained  an  "ex- 
traordinary case."  He  had  never  attended  a  theological 
seminary,  but  his  examination  was  so  satisfactory  that  a 
member  of  the  Presbytery  declared  ''his  examination 
showed  his  mother  to  be  a  better  teacher  than  a  theologi- 
cal seminary." 

A  few  weeks  after  young  Slaymaker  sailed  for  the 
mission  field  the  newspapers  published  a  cablegram  say- 
ing that  the  mission  steamer  Lapsley,  in  ascending  the 
Congo,  had  captized,  and  that  the  Rev.  Henry  Slaymaker 
and  twenty-three  natives  had  been  drowned. 

Just  as  he  was  reaching  the  field  where  he  was  so 
sorely  needed  and  for  which  he  was  so  peculiarly  fitted, 
he  was  taken.  We  cannot  understand  such  a  loss.  Is  it 
a  loss?  No,  it  is  a  glorious  investment.  Since  Christ 
laid  down  his  life  for  the  world's  redemption  no  life  simi- 
larly consecrated  is  lost,  whether  death  come  soon  or  late. 

At  the  memorial  service  of  Henry  Slaymaker  in  his 
home  church  in  Alexandria,  they  actually  gathered  a  me- 
morial offering  to  raise  the  Lapsley  and  prosecute  the 
work.  It  is  such  splendid  faith  as  this  that  will  conquer 
the  world. 

In  a  letter  one  of  the  secretaries  said  to  the  church : 
''There  must  be  no  turning  back  now.  On  to  Luebo  must 
be  our  cry!" 

Splendid  heroism !  The  devotion  of  this  young  martyr 
has  already  fired  the  faith  of  others.  Christ  gave  his  life. 
What  am  I  giving?  It  is  the  cause  to  which  I  can  never 
give  too  much,  and,  in  which  what  I  do,  never  can  be  lost. 

/  am  debtor!     God  help  me  to  pay  my  debts! 


THE  EVANGELISTIC  PASTOR. 

By  Rev.  J.  Wilbur  Chapmax,  D.  D. 

Just  what  is  an  evangelistic  pastor?  Perhaps  we  shall 
better  reach  an  understanding  concerning  his  position  if 
we  answer  the  question  negatively. 

First:  He  is  not  of  necessity  one  who  preaches  con- 
stantly along  what  is  known  as  evangelistic  lines.  There 
are  very  many  people  to-day  who  seem  to  think  that 
the  pastor  is  not  doing  evangelistic  work  unless  he  is 
regularly  giving  an  invitation  in  so  many  words  and  all 
the  time  calling  men  to  repent.  This  is  not  necessarily 
true,  as  we  shall  show  later,  for  frequently  the  best  invi- 
tation is  not  spoken  by  the  lips — but  by  the  very  presence 
of  the  man  of  God. 

Second :  He  is  not  always  one  who  is  conspicuous 
because  of  great  additions  to  his  membership.  There  are 
men  to-day  whose  additions  have  been  exceedingly  small 
who  are  as  thoroughly  evangelistic  as  those  whose  suc- 
cess has  been  far  more  remarkable.  With  the  minister 
as  with  the  church,  it  is  the  spirit  that  counts.  If  he  has 
a  real  concern  for  the  lost,  if  he  lives  a  life  of  fellowship 
with  Christ,  he  could  choose  any  theme  for  his  people 
and  it  would  be  apparent  to  all  his  hearers  that  he  was 
longing  for  the  lost  to  know  Christ. 

He  need  not  of  necessity  close  every  sermon  with  an 
appeal,  although  that  is  frequently  the  best  thing  to  do, 
for  in  so  doing  we  impress  our  hearers  with  our  confi- 
dence in  our  message  and  our  expectation  of  results. 

The  minister  of  the  seminary  church  where  I  was  a 


142  The  Presbyterian  Church 

student  one  evening  preached  a  sermon  and  then  returned 
to  his  home  utterly  discouraged  because  he  felt  that  he 
was  a  failure  in  the  ministry,  and  he  practically  deter- 
mined that  he  would  never  preach  again,  yet  at  the  same 
time  he  was  conscious  that  he  had  been  greatly  burdened 
for  the  lost.  Some  time  past  midnight  his  door-bell  rang, 
and  the  leader  of  his  choir,  who  had  been  counted  a  skep- 
tic, came  to  him  to  say,  "Doctor,  I  am  in  an  agony  con- 
cerning my  soul.  Your  sermon  to-night  has  convicted 
me  of  my  sin  and  I  must  have  help  or  I  shall  die."  In  a 
very  short  time  he  was  rejoicing  in  Christ.  Then  said 
the  minister  to  him,  ''What  was  it  in  my  sermon  that 
moved  you,  I  should  like  to  have  you  tell  me."  The  man 
replied :  "It  was  not  so  much,  sir,  what  you  said  but  the 
way  you  said  it.  I  could  see  by  the  look  in  your  eye  and 
by  the  very  pathos  in  your  voice  that  you  were  longing 
for  men  to  be  saved  and  I  could  not  resist  your  message." 
But  there  is  a  positive  answer  to  the  question  to-day.  Let 
us  consider  that  side  of  it. 

First :  That  man  is  evangelistic  who  is  truly  a  man  of 
prayer  and  Bible  study,  and  yet  at  the  same  time  one  of 
intense  earnest  action.  The  greatest  fanatics  I  know  are 
those  w^ho  study  the  Bible  and  pray  almost  without  ceas- 
ing and  then  stop  with  these  devotions.  They  do  not 
fit  into  practice  in  their  daily  lives  the  message  God  gave 
them  in  his  Word  and  the  vision  he  vouchsafed  unto 
them  in  their  prayers,  so  on  the  one  side  there  must  be 
prayer  and  Bible  study;  we  cannot  have  too  much  of  it, 
while  on  the  other  side  there  is  the  translation  into  life 
of  those  things  which  God  has  given  us.  It  was  thus  that 
Finney  prayed,  read  God's  Word  and  worked,  and  it 
was  thus  that  Mr.  Moody  lived  and  preached. 

Second:  That  man  is  evangelistic  in  his  preaching 
who  realizes  that  men  are  lost  without  Christ,  and  that 


In  North  Carolina.  143 

the  Gospel  is  the  only  way  of  salvation.  He  believes  that 
it  is  not  so  much  a  question  either  of  character  or  conduct 
primarily  as  of  the  new  birth.  He  realizes  that  "the 
wages  of  sin  is  death,  and  the  soul  that  sinneth  it  shall 
die."  With  such  a  conviction  as  this,  if  he  is  true  to 
his  ordination  vows  and  also  true  to  the  Word  of  God, 
he  can  preach  in  no  halting,  hesitating  way. 

An  old  Scotch  woman  went  to  hear  Robert  Murray  Mc- 
Cheyenne  preach  for  the  first  time.  Some  one  asked  her 
what  she  thought  of  him.  She  hesitated  for  a  moment 
and  then  said,  what  I  am  sure  any  true  minister  had 
rather  have  said  about  him  than  that  he  was  the  most 
brilliant  preacher  among  men.  She  said :  '^The  man 
preaches  as  if  he  was  a-dyin'  to  have  you  converted." 
Oh,  for  isuch  a  spirit  as  this  in  the  ministry  to-day.  Thank 
God  for  the  men  who  have  great  intellectual  power,  for 
those  who  bear  well  their  scolastic  honors  to  which  they 
are  certainly  entitled,  but  is  it  not  true  that  what  we 
need  to-day  more  than  anything  else  is  a  gracious  out- 
pouring of  the  Holy  Ghost,  an  energizing  of  that  power 
which  comes  only  from  on  high,  that  we  may  preach  for 
souls  ? 

The  pastor  is  pre-eminently  the  soul  winner  in  his  own 
parish.  No  one  can  take  his  place.  If  he  is  not  faithful 
to  those  over  whom  God  has  made  him  the  overseer,  he 
shall  be  called  to  account  at  the  judgment  seat  of  Christ. 
Whatever  we  may  believe  concerning  the  office  of  the 
evangelist,  and  we  must  believe  thoroughly  in  this,  how- 
ever necessary  it  may  be  that  we  should  give  him  his 
rightful  place  in  the  church,  *and  many  agree  that  this  is 
almost  an  absolute  necessity,  yet  no  evangelist  can  sup- 
plant the  pastor  in  the  matter  of  soul-winning.  But  if  the 
pastor  is  to  be  successful,  there  are  certain  points  which 
must  be  emphasized  concerning  his  life,  and  this  to  a 


144  The  Presbyterian  Church 

greater  degree  even  than  in  the  experience  of  the  ordi- 
nary pastor  of  a  church  who  may  hold  a  congregation 
together  because  of  eloquent  or  intellectual  achievements, 
because  of  winning  social  qualities  or  by  a  striking  per- 
sonality. Xo  pastor  can  ever  be  a  soul  winner  without 
attention  is  given  to, 

First :  His  private  life.  One  might  preach  an  ordinary 
sermon  and  by  force  of  intellect  or  power  of  magnetism 
interest  an  assembly.  I  have  in  mind  a  man  who  for  years 
led  an  impure  life,  yet,  while  he  interested  his  congre- 
gation with  his  masterful  gifts,  he  never  won  a  soul  to 
the  ]\Iaster,  and  if  any  one  should  say  in  answer  to.  this, 
''But  are  there  not  evangelists  whose  lives  are  unclean 
and  yet  who  have  a  measure  of  success?"  my  answer 
would  be,  ''The  evangelist  may  be  reaping  a  harvest  the 
seed  of  which  has  been  sown  by  some  godly  pastor,"  and 
so  the  illustration  still  holds.  But  to  be  a  soul  winner  is 
entirely  different.  The  private  life  must  be  taken  into 
account.  There  are  trees,  the  spread  of  whose  roots 
under  ground  equals  the  spread  of  their  branches  above 
ground,  and  this  leads  me  to  say  that  no  man  can  be  a 
soul  winner  in  the  ministry  without  he  is  right  in  his 
home,  right  in  his  study,  right  in  his  devotion,  right  in 
his  heart,  or  in  other  words,  lives  in  private  what  he 
preaches  in  public.  Our  people  forget  our  texts,  they 
frequently  forget  our  particular  forms  of  expression,  but 
the  spirit  of  the  message  we  have  delivered  is  about 
them  not  infrequently  for  a  lifetime. 

A  prominent  American  preacher  told  me  that  he  once 
preached  in  Robert  Murray  McCheyenne's  pulpit,  and 
he  asked  if  any  one  there  had  heard  ]\IcCheyenne  preach. 
One  old  man  was  brought  to  the  front.  ''Can  you  tell 
me,"  said  the  minister,  "some  of  the  texts  of  jMcChey- 
enne?"  and  the  old  man  made  reply,  'T  don't  remember 


In  North  Carolina.  145 

them."  ''Then  can  you  tell  me  some  sentences  he  used?" 
and  again  the  reply  was,  'T  have  entirely  forgotten 
them."  With  a  feeling  of  disappointment,  the  great 
preacher  said,  "Well,  don't  you  remember  anything  about 
him  at  all?"  "Ah,"  said  the  man,  "that  is  a  different 
question.  I  do  remember  something  about  him.  When 
I  was  a  lad  by  the  roadside  playing,  one  day  Robert 
Murray  McCheyenne  came  along,  and  laying  his  hand 
upon  my  head,  he  said,  'Jamie,  lad,  I  am  away  to  see 
your  poor  sick  sister,'  and  then  looking  into  my  eyes,  he 
said,  'And  Jamie,  I  am  very  concerned  about  your  own 
soul.'  I  have  forgotten  his  texts  and  his  sermons,  sir,  but 
I  can  feel  the  tremble  of  his  hand  and  I  can  still  see  the 
tear  in  his  eye." 

Let  us  remember  it  is  not  so  much  what  we  say  as  the 
way  we  say  it  that  constitutes  the  minister  the  soul 
winner. 

Second:  The  very  greatest  attention  must  be  paid  to 
the  prayer  life  if  the  pastor  is  to  be  a  winner  of  souls, 
and  I  doubt  not  but  that  the  most  of  us  fail  just  here, 
largely  because  of  the  fact  that  we  are  so  busy,  for  very 
few  people  understand  the  responsibility  and  obligations 
resting  upon  a  pastor;  from  morning  until  night  and 
often  night  till  morning  he  is  at  the  call  of  his  people  and 
of  the  citizens  of  the  city  or  town  where  he  may  live, 
and  it  is  such  an  easy  thing  to  pray  in  a  perfunctory  sort 
of  way  or  not  to  pray  at  all.  A  very  few  may  be  un- 
mindful of  prayer  because  of  selfishness,  a  few  others 
because  of  indifference,  but  perhaps  many  of  us  because 
we  do  not  appreciate  what  the  power  of  prayer  is. 

In  the  revival  of  1857,  when  Canon  Ryle  sent  out  his 
celebrated  appeal  to  the  Church  of  England,  he  made 
this  statement,  that  he  had  looked  the  Bible  through  and 
found  that  wherever  there  was  a  man  of  prayer  there  was 


146  The  Presbyterian  Church 

a  man  of  power;  that  he  had  studied  the  history  of  the 
Church  and  had  learned  that  wherever  there  was  a  man 
or  woman  of  power,  there  was  one  who  knew  how  to 
pray.  He  said  some  were  Armenians,  some  Calvinists, 
some  rich,  some  poor,  some  were  wise  and  some  ignorant, 
some  loved  the  liturgy  and  some  cared  little  for  it,  but 
all  knew  how  to  pray. 

Jesus  was  an  illustration  of  this.  In  Mark  we  read, 
"A  great  while  before  day  he  went  away  to  pray."  He 
was  the  Son  of  God,  yet  he  would  not  begin  a  day  with- 
out prayer.  It  is  to  be  noticed,  however,  that  the  day 
begun  thus  with  prayer  ended  with  the  healing  of  the 
leper.  If  the  Son  of  God  could  not  start  the  day  without 
communing  with  God,  how  dangerous  it  is  for  any  of 
us  to  try  it. 

In  Matthew  we  learn  that  after  he  had  fed  the  multi- 
tudes, he  went  away  in  a  quiet  place  to  pray.  He  had 
just  worked  the  miracle,  and  yet  he  prays.  I  have  a 
friend  in  heaven  who  used  to  say  that  it  is  more  difficult 
to  use  a  victory  than  to  gain  one,  by  which  she  meant  that 
the  most  dangerous  day  for  us  was  the  day  following 
a  mountain-top  experi-ence,  for  we  are  so  liable  to  try 
to  live  upon  the  past  rather  than  upon  the  present  prom- 
ises of  God.  Jesus  prayed  before  the  miracle  and  after 
the  miracle,  by  day  and  by  night.  What  a  rebuke  he  is 
to  some  of  us. 

In  Luke  we  read  that  as  he  prayed,  the  fashion  of  his 
countenance  was  changed.  To  my  mind  this  is  one  of  the 
best  illustrations.  It  will  be  a  glad  day  in  the  church 
when  those  of  us  who  know  Christ  show  by  our  faces 
that  we  have  been  in  fellowship  with  him.  There  is  some- 
thing about  the  look  of  the  eye,  the  ring  of  the  voice  and 
the  atmosphere  of  a  man  who  knows  how  to  pray  that 
carries  conviction  always. 


In  North  Carolina.  147 

In  John  we  read  that  he  stooped  down  at  the  grave  of 
Lazarus  after  he  had  prayed,  and  said,  ''Lazarus,  come 
forth." 

I  had  a  letter  one  day  from  some  one  who  wanted  me 
to  write  on  a  postal  card  the  rules  for  soul  winning. 
This  seemed  a  strange  request,  when  I  remembered  that 
I  had  a  book  in  my  library  larger  than  my  Bible  on  '^How 
to  Win  Souls,"  and  yet  you  can  write  the  rules  upon  a 
postal  card.  Indeed,  there  is  but  one  rule,  *'Lord,  teach 
us  to  pray."  The  man  who  knows  how  to  pray  in  the 
right  way  is  a  soul  winner  always.  Whatever  may  be 
one's  intellectual  ability  therefore,  without  prayer  he  is 
weak  in  this  direction.  This  is  true  whether  he"  is  in  the 
pulpit  or  in  the  pew,  whether  he  is  a  Sunday-school 
teacher,  or  the  superintendent,  or  just  a  member  of  the 
Church. 

Third :  If  the  pastor  is  to  be  a  soul  winner,  close  at- 
tention must  be  paid  to  his  public  life.  It  must  in  every 
sense  accord  with  his  message.  He  cannot  preach  about 
prayer  and  himself  be  prayerless,  nor  can  he  talk  of 
power  and  be  powerless,  nor  can  he  speak  of  consecra- 
tion and  Hve  a  selfish  life,  nor  can  he  talk  of  the  concern 
of  Jesus  and  himself  be  unconcerned.  Unless  the  private 
life  and  the  public  preaching  strike  in  unison,  the  preacher 
is  not  a  soul  winner,  nor  is  the  Sunday-school  teacher, 
nor  the  superintendent,  nor  is  any  Christian. 

Fourth:  No  minister  can  be  a  soul  winner  without  he 
gives  close  attention  to  his  pulpit  life.  This  suggests 
the  theme  of  the  sermon  which  must  always  and  ever  be 
the  gospel.  It  has  not  lost  its  power,  whatever  men  may 
say  to  the  contrary,  and  as  a  matter  of  fact,  it  is  true 
that  wherever  men  are  really  drawing  crowds  of  people 
and  holding  them,  their  theme  is  the  glorious  gospel  of 
the  Son  of  God.     Sensationalism  may  draw  for  a  time, 


148  The  Presbyterian  Church 

but  the  gospel  steadily  wins  and  always  holds.  We  boast 
a  great  deal  in  these  days  of  our  great  men  and  noble 
women  in  America,  philanthropists,  statesmen,  mission- 
aries, our  honored  fathers  and  mothers,  but  in  so  far 
as  they  are  Christians  and  the  most  of  them  are,  they 
have  drawn  their  inspiration  for  holy  living  from  the 
story  of  Jesus  the  Son  of  God;  cradled  in  the  manger, 
living  at  Nazareth,  preaching  in  Galilee,  suffering  in 
Gethsemane,  scourged  in  Jerusalem,  dying  upon  the  cross, 
buried  in  the  tomb,  rising  with  power,  ascending  up  into 
heaven,  seated  in  glory  and  coming  again  with  majesty 
and  power.  Could  there  be  a  grander  message  than  this, 
and  that  minister  who  delivers  it  fearlessly  and  yet  ten- 
derly in  the  very  spirit  of  Jesus  himself,  will  be  a  soul 
winner.  It  has  always  been  true,  but  in  addition  to  this 
the  message  must  be, 

First :  Practical.  I  know  that  I  speak  for  a  great  army 
of  busy  men  and  women  in  this  world,  when  I  say  that 
these  people  have  little  time  to  listen  to  philosophical  dis- 
cussions and  mere  intellectual  discourses.  Life  is  too 
short  for  this,  and  as  a  result  of  the  experiences  of  the 
weak,  they  are  too  weary  to  give  the  time  to  listening 
to  what  will  not  help  them  in  their  living,  and  the  ma- 
jority of  them  come  to  the  church  to  hear  the  truth  that 
will  make  them  better  and  truer  in  every  way;  and  more 
of  the  people  of  the  world  would  join  them  in  their  wor- 
ship if  they  were  sure  that  they  would  hear  from  the  pul- 
pit the  gospel  which  has  ever  transformed  lives  and 
strengthened  character. 

Second:  It  must  be  personal.  A  distinguished  New 
York  pastor  tells  of  preaching  a  sermon  one  day  in  which 
he  said  to  his  people:  "every  one  in  this  church  is  either 
a  channel  or  a  barrier  for  spiritual  power  in  his  relation 
towards    God."     One   prominent    man    returned   to    his 


In  North  Carolina.  149 

home,   entered   his   library   and   determined   to   find   out 
which  he  was,  and  learned  that  he  was  a  barrier. 

Before  he  left  the  room  he  determined  that  from  that 
time  on  he  would  be  a  channel.  The  next  day  he  began 
to  speak  to  his  employees.  The  first  was  a  Catholic,  and 
he  urged  him  to  be  a  true  Catholic.  Among  them  came 
his  private  secretary,  and  he  asked  him  if  he  had  kept 
his  promises  to  him  and  if  he  had  been  a  good  employer. 
Thinking  that  perhaps  he  was  about  to  be  discharged,  the 
private  secretary  asked  him  what  fault  he  had  to  find  with 
him,  when  he  said,  "It  is  not  that,  but  I  am  a  Christian, 
and  I  am  bound  for  heaven,  and  I  should  not  like  to  go 
without  asking  you  to  go  with  me."  Out  from  that  one 
store  thirteen  men  have  been  won  for  Christ  by  the 
testimony  of  this  consecrated  business  man.  The  time 
has  come  when  ministers  have  had  given  to  them  an 
opportunity  to  speak  plainly  and  personally  to  their  peo- 
ple and  if  they  speak  in  the  spirit  of  Christ  the  message 
will  be  received  gladly,  and  many  lives  will  be  com- 
pletely changed. 

The  Evangelistic  Sermon. 

In  a  conference  of  ministers  gathered  not  long  ago  to 
discuss  the  general  subject  of  evangelistic  work  the  ser- 
mon was  naturally  discussed. 

One  minister  said,  "An  evangelistic  sermon  is  one  that 
reaches  out  after  a  soul";  another  said,  "It  is  a  sermon 
which  has  enough  of  the  Gospel  in  it  so  that  if  one  should 
hear  the  preacher  but  once  he  would  know  what  he  must 
do  to  be  saved."  Still  another  said,  "  It  is  a  sermon  which 
provokes  a  crisis  in  the  hearer's  life,"  which  is  rather  the 
best  definition,  because  it  is  at  once  apparent  that  men 
may  be  evangelistic  and  preach  not  only  for  the  winning 
of  souls,  but  for  the  upbuilding  of  character.    An  evange- 


150  The  Presbyterian  Church 

listic  sermon  is  one  which  has  a  definite  aim,  and  that 
aim  is  the  winning  of  the  lost  to  Christ,  and  then  the 
building  up  in  Christ  of  those  who  are  won.  It  is  a  ser- 
mon which  may  be  practically  applied  in  our  every-day 
living,  and  is  by  all  means  a  sermon  which  impresses  one 
with  his  need  for  Christ  and  the  absolute  sincerity  in  th«- 
desire  of  the  preacher  that  he  may  be  saved. 

There  may  be  at  least  four  distinct  marks  of  an  evange- 
listic sermon : 

First.  It  is  dictated  by  the  Holy  Ghost.  Since  he  knowa 
the  hearts  of  men,  inspired  men  to  write  the  Word  of 
God,  and  at  the  same  time  is  fully  acquainted  with  us  as 
his  instruments,  it  naturally  follows  that  he  can  suggest 
the  theme  and  its  manner  of  treatment  w^hich  would  be 
most  effective  in  reaching  the  lost  if  we  did  but  give  him 
the  chance  to  do  so. 

The  late  George  H.  C.  MacGregor  told  me  that  he  came 
one  night  to  his  London  pulpit  with  his  sermon  carefully 
prepared,  for  he  was  a  thorough  student,  and  suddenly 
became  impressed  with  the  fact  that  for  some  reason  he 
ought  to  turn  aside  from  his  well-thought-out  sermon  and 
give  an  entirely  different  message,  for  which  he  was  in 
his  judgment  not  so  well  equipped.  But  he  followed  his 
leading,  preaching  his  sermon  not  with  great  satisfaction 
to  himself,  and  possibly  with  not  such  great  delight  to 
his  people,  but  the  next  morning  he  found  a  letter  on  his 
table  in  which  the  writer  said :  "I  was  on  my  way  to  end 
my  life  last  night  and  dropped  into  your  church  just  to 
pass  away  the  time.  I  do  not  remember  your  singing, 
nor  the  words  you  spoke,  but  the  text  you  chose  was  my 
mother's  favorite.  It  was  her  last  message  to  me  when  I 
left  home  as  a  boy,  and  I  could  not  get  away  from  it  last 
night.  Instead  of  being  a  suicide  to-day  I  have  become  a 
Christian."     "  From  that  day  till  this,"  said  this  sainted 


In  North  Carolina.  151 

preacher,  "  I  have  tried  to  deUver  no  message  that  was 
not  clearly  dictated  both  in  the  choice  of  the  text  and  the 
development  of  the  theme  by  the  Holy  Spirit  of  God." 

Second.  The  evangelistic  sermon  is  one  which  is 
wrought  out  in  prayer  and  preached  in  the  power  of 
prayer.  There  is  a  tendency  on  the  part  of  the  preacher 
when  he  is  intellectually  well  versed  in  his  message  to 
depend  upon  his  preparation,  his  power  as  an  orator  and 
his  natural  ability  to  move  men,  but  in  the  evangelistic 
sermon,  which  is  to  lead  men  to  Christ,  not  alone  must 
these  things  move  him,  but  also  that  strength  which  comes 
by  prayer.  It  is  only  w^hen  the  sermon  has  been  wrought 
out  on  our  knees  and  is  preached  in  the  consciousness, 
that  the  one  of  whom  we  speak  is  just  at  our  side,  that 
there  is  power  in  it  to  persuade  the  lost. 

Third.  An  evangelistic  sermon  is  one  which  is  preached 
first  of  all  to  oneself.  It  is  a  good  thing  when  the  message 
is  completed,  not  only  to  go  over  it  on  our  knees,  but  to 
go  over  It  for  ourselves.  The  point  that  fails  to  move 
us  we  might  as  well  cut  out,  for  there  is  this  sure  test  of 
the  power  of  the  sermon,  it  will  as  a  rule  move  our  hearers 
in  the  same  proportion  that  it  has  moved  ourselves.  If 
it  has  helped  us  it  will  help  others.  Mr.  Spurgeon  used 
to  say  true  preaching  is  artesian,  it  wells  up  from  great 
depths.  This  is  especially  true  of  evangelistic  preaching. 
Fourth.  An  evangelistic  sermon  is  one  w^hich  is 
preached  with  the  expectation  of  results.  "  I  preached 
the  Gospel/'  said  a  minister  to  me  the  other  day  in  a 
western  city.  ''  I  know  it  was  the  Gospel,  and  at  the  close 
of  the  sermon  two  women  came  to  ask  what  they  could 
do  to  be  saved.  I  confess  to  my  shame  that  I  was  sur- 
prised." 

Evangelistic  preachers  have  always  found  it  true  that 
in  proportion  as  they  have  expected  results  and  preached 


152  The  Presbyterian  Church 

in  the  power  of  their  expectation  God  has  seemed  to  honor 
their  effort  and  to  inspire  others  with  the  same  enthusiasm. 

Fifth.  An  evangelistic  sermon  is  one  which  is  well 
illustrated.  There  are  many  in  the  pulpit  to-day  who  are 
afraid  of  illustrations.  They  ridicule  the  simple  story- 
telling preacher,  and  in  some  instances  they  have  a  right 
to  do  so,  but  let  us  not  forget  that  Jesus  constantly  told 
stories  of  the  flowers  at  his  feet,  of  the  birds  that  flew 
above  his  head,  of  the  w^oman  that  baked  bread,  of  the 
farmer  that  sowed  the  seed,  of  the  old  father  that  waited 
for  his  boy.  He  never  preached  a  sermon  without  an 
illustration,  indeed  without  many  of  them,  but  the  illus- 
tration must  illustrate. 

One  of  our  prominent  ministers  in  this  country  in  tell- 
ing of  the  visit  of  the  celebrated  Dr.  Lorenz  to  this  coun- 
try told  of  the  little  boy  who  was  operated  upon  for  the 
straightening  of  his  foot.  He  said  after  he  was  out  from 
under  the  power  of  the  anaesthetic,  "  It  will  be  a  long  time 
before  my  mother  hears  the  last  of  this,  doctor,"  and  then 
he  told  the  story  also  of  a  boy  of  his  own  acquaintance 
from  a  poor  German  family,  whose  foot  was  crooked  and 
who  was  operated  upon  by  a  celebrated  doctor.  The 
operation  was  a  success  and  then  the  minister  under 
whose  influence  the  work  had  been  done  went  to  the 
hospital  to  take  the  boy  home.  The  plaster  caste  is  taken 
away  from  the  foot,  and  it  is  as  perfect  as  the  otlier.  When 
his  attention  w^as  called  to  the  nurses  in  the  hospital,  to 
the  equipment  of  the  institution,  to  the  fine  windows  in 
the  building,  to  every  suggestion  the  boy  would  reply, 
"But  these  things  are  nothing  compared  with  the  doctor. 
He  is  the  greatest  man  I  have  ever  known."  And  w^hen 
they  reached  the  Missouri  town  and  they  stept  off  the 
train  the  old  German  mother  was  waiting  to  receive  her 
child.    She  did  not  look  at  his  hands,  neither  at  his  face, 


In  North  Carolina.  153 

but  she  fell  on  her  knees  and  looked  at  his  foot  and  then 
cried  out  with  tears,  "  It  is  just  like  any  other  foot."  As 
she  took  the  boy  in  her  arms  sobbing  over  and  over  he 
kept  saying  to  her,  "  Mother,  you  must  know  the  doctor, 
you  must  know  the  doctor."  Then  the  preacher  turned 
upon  his  audience  to  say,  "And  yet  there  is  no  one  of  us 
but  what  Jesus  Christ  has  done  ten  thousand  times  more 
than  the  doctor  did  for  that  boy  and  we  have  never  spoken 
for  him." 

This  illustration  is  a  sermon  in  itself.  It  was  something 
in  the  every-day  life  of  the  preacher.  There  are  hun- 
dreds of  instances  like  it  occurring  in  the  year.  Ability  to 
see  these  things  and  to  apply  them  in  our  teaching  and 
preaching  w^ould  increase  our  effectiveness  almost  a  hun- 
dredfold. 


THE  EVANGELISTIC   CHURCH. 

There  is  a  general  inquiry  to-day  in  all  parts  of  the 
church  both  on  the  part  of  ministers  and  laymen  concern- 
ing the  evangelistic  church.  It  is  possibly  true  also  that 
there  is  in  many  quarters  of  the  church  a  misconception 
as  to  what  the  spirit  and  the  work  of  such  a  church  should 
be.  The  commission  given  by  the  great  head  of  the 
church  is  clearly  set  forth  in  the  New  Testament  Scrip- 
tures— Matthew  xxviii.  16-20;  Mark  xvi.  15-20;  Luke 
xxiv.  46-49;  Acts  ii.  1-4. 

From  all  of  which  we  learn :     . 

First.  That  God  expects  us  to  evangelize  the  unsaved 
and  the  unchurched  masses.  If  a  church  is  not  evange- 
listic, it  will  soon  cease  to  be  evangelical. 

Second.  That  God  equips  us  to  evangelize.  He  has  left 
undone  no  part  of  his  w^ork.  It  is  no  question  as  to  our 
own  ability  or  fitness,  but  altogether  a  question  as  to  his 


154  The  Presbyterian  Church 

filling  us  with  that  power  which  enables  us  to  do  his  will, 
and  this  he  has  pledged  himself  in  his  word  to  do. 

Third.  If  he  expects  and  equips,  then  he  will  one  day 
require  at  our  hands  an  accounting  for  the  field  we  might 
have  occupied  and  the  power  we  might  have  possessed. 

I. — The  Church. 

What  is  the  church?  Whatever  other  definition  may 
be  given  this  at  least  is  correct  so  far  as  our  conception  of 
the  evangelistic  church  is  concerned: 

It  is  the  body  of  believers  united  by  faith  to  Christ, 
who  is  the  living  head.  This  at  once  suggests  a  line  of 
truth  regarding  the  conduct  of  the  body. 

There  used  to  be  a  man  in  Washington  who  as  he 
walked  the  streets  always  attracted  the  attention  of 
passers-by  to  himself. 

First.  Because  of  his  remarkable  head,  which  they  said 
was  more  like  the  head  of  Daniel  Webster  than  any  other 
since  his  day.  And,  secondly,  because  of  his  deformed 
body.  The  first  was  a  look  of  admiration,  the  second  one 
of  pity,  and  is  this  not  a  truth  for  us  ?  Our  head  is  per- 
fect ;  when  he  was  here  among  men  they  said,  "  Never 
man  spake  like  this  man."  Now  that  he  is  exalted  at  the 
right  hand  of  God  he  is  the  chiefest  among  ten  thousand 
and  the  one  altogether  lovely.  But  concerning  the  body, 
in  some  places  at  least  we  are  privileged  to  say  that  it 
poorly  represents  him  and  illy  illustrates  his  spirit.  If  he 
is  the  head  and  the  church  is  the  body  then  it  naturally 
follows  that  we  are  expected  to  do  his  will,  and  at  once 
the  question  is  asked,  ''But  may  we  know  his  will"?  "Cer- 
tainly we  may  know  it,  by  studying  carefully  his  instruc- 
tions to  his  disciples."  In  the  early  days  he  said,  as  he 
sent  them  forth,  'T  will  make  you  fishers  of  men,"  and  as 
he  sent  out  the  seventy  it  was  to  preach  and  to  teach.    In 


In  North  Carolina.  155 

his  parables  and  his  sermons  the  same  spirit  is  plainly 
manifest,  and  since  he  is  the  unchanging  Christ,  his  will 
of  other  days  is  his  will  for  to-day.  In  the  Epistle  to  the 
Hebrews  we  read:  "J^sus  Christ  the  same  yesterday,  to- 
day and  forever,"  but  in  the  Revision  there  is  a  change 
made  in  the  translation  and  we  read:  "J^sus  Christ  the 
same  yesterday,  to-day,  yea  and  forever."  There  is  the 
addition  of  the  word  "yea."  Some  one  has  suggested  that 
the  author  of  the  Epistle  is  writing  concerning  the  Jesus 
of  yesterday  and  to-day  being  the  same,  when  suddenly,  as 
it  were,  the  very  angels  in  the  skies  break  forth,  ''  Yea 
and  forever."  He  is  the  same  in  heaven  in  his  purpose 
and  desires  as  when  he  walked  among  men  and  commis- 
sioned them  to  go  out  and  seek  the  lost  until  they  were 
found. 

There  are  some  things  which  the  evangelistic  church  is 
not. 

First.  It  is  not  of  necessity  a  church  which  holds  extra 
services,  although  these  are  as  a  rule  advisable,  for  it  is 
by  the  extraordinary  service  that  the  attention  of  some  is 
called  to  Christ  who  would  not  otherwise  think  of  him 
in  their  busy  lives,  yet  one  of  the  strongest  churches  in 
America  never  passes  a  communion  without  a  large  acces- 
sion. Recently  one  hundred  and  sixty-six  came  to  Christ 
at  one  communion  service,  and  it  is  the  exception  rather 
than  the  rule  that  extra  services  are  held.  The  sainted 
Andrew  Bonar,  it  is  said,  rarely  held  an  extra  service,  and 
never  passed  a  communion  without  the  coming  of  many 
into  the  fold. 

Second.  It  is  not  of  necessity  a  church  of  constant 
accessions.  If  the  seed  is  faithfully  sown  and  there  is  an 
earnest  evangelistic  purpose  the  Lord  of  the  harvest  wdl 
care  for  the  result.    For  a  time  they  may  be  meagre,  but 


156  The  Presbyterian  Church 

God's  statement  is  true,  "  His  word  shall  not  return  unto 
him  void." 

Third.  It  is  not  of  necessity  a  church  having  important 
accessions,  for  as  men  count  the  work  frequently  it  is  a 
failure,  so  few  come  to  him ;  as  God  views  it  it  is  the  most 
pronounced  success.  When  the  old  Scotch  minister  said, 
no  one  ti"ad  joined  his  church  for  a  long  period  of  time 
except  Bobbie  i\Iof¥att,  he  little  knew,  as  Joseph  Parker 
once  said,  that  when  he  added  Robert  Mofifatt  to  the 
church  he  practically  added  a  continent  to  the  Kingdom 
of  God.  It  is  the  spirit  of  the  church  that  counts,  and 
if  underlying  every  public  service,  whether  it  be  the 
preaching  on  Sunday,  or  the  midweek  prayer  service,  the 
gathering  of  the  elders  or  the  meeting  of  the  Sunday- 
school  teachers,  there  is  plainly  manifest  a  real  concern 
for  the  lost.  With  such  conditions  prevailing  we  have  an 
evangelistic  church. 

II. — The  Evangelistic. 

First.  The  evangelistic  church  is  one,  the  spirit  of  which 
breathes  a  welcome  to  every  one  who  crosses  its  threshold, 
and  whether  it  be  the  minister's  sermon,  the  music  of  the 
choir,  the  grace  with  which  the  ushering  is  accomplished, 
the  welcome  given  to  the  stranger,  the  spirit  is  all  the 
spirit  of  Christ,  in  which  lost  men  are  made  to  feel  their 
need  of  him  and  are  impressed  with  the  thought  that  there 
is  hope  for  every  one  away  from  him. 

Second.  The  evangelistic  church  is  one  willing  to  use 
any  method,  whatever  that  method  may  be,  so  long  as  it 
may  have  the  approval  of  the  Great  Head  of  the  Church 
and  may  detract  nothing  from  his  honor  and  glory  and 
not  in  any  way  grieve  the  Holy  Spirit  of  God.  Since  the 
shepherd   sought  his  sheep   until   he   found   it,   and   the 


In  North  Carolina.  157 

woman  her  piece  of  money  until  she  recovered  it,  and  the 
father  waited  for  his  boy  until  he  was  home  once  more, 
so  let  us  change  our  methods  if  need  be  until  we  impress 
the  lost  with  the  fact  that  we  long  for  them  to  know  him 
who  died  that  they  might  live.  He  said  he  would  make 
us  fishers  of  men. 

Third.  The  evangelistic  church  is  a  church  of  prayer. 
It  is  said  that  when  Mr.  Moody  and  Mr.  Sankey  went  as 
strangers  across  the  sea  their  first  meeting  in  the  morning 
was  a  discouragement,  and  in  the  evening  it  was  a  gra- 
cious manifestation  of  God's  power,  and  some  time  after- 
wards it  was  found  that  one  of  the  members  of  that 
church  had  read  a  little  notice  in  a  paper  concerning  the 
work  of  the  unknown  evangelists.  Moody  and  Sankey,  in 
America,  and  had  prayed  God  to  send  them  to  her  land  and 
to  her  ohurch.  This  little  slip  of  paper  she  had  kept  under 
her  pillow  and  when  she  knew  that  the  evangehsts  had 
come,  she  burst  into  tears  and  cried :  ''Now,  Lord,  lettest 
thou  thine  servant  depart,  for  mine  eyes  have  seen  thy 
salvation."  There  never  has  been  a  revival  in  history  that 
has  not  been  born  in  prayer.  There  never  has  been  an 
evangelistic  church  since  the  church  was  dedicated  that 
was  not  nurtured  by  prayer.  The  time  has  come  to  call 
the  followers  of  Christ  to  their  knees.  It  would  seem 
almost  as  if  God's  set  time  to  favor  Zion  is  now  here. 

Fourth.  The  evangelistic  church  is  one  in  which  pastor 
and  church  are  practically  of  one  mind.  Since  Jesus  him- 
self couldi  do  no  mighty  works  because  of  their  unbelief, 
how  can  a  pastor  to-day  accomplish  very  much  if  he  is 
opposed  by  his  church  or  hindered  by  indifiference.  They 
must  both  together  have  one  mind,  and  that  the  mind  of 
him  who  ever  sought  the  lost,  then  there  is  a  mighty  force 
brought  to  play  upon  the  conscience  and  life  of  the  un- 
saved which  cannot  possibly  be  gainsaid. 


158  The  Presbyterian  Church 

III. — A  Final  Word. 

First.  The  evangelistic  church  is  an  organized  church. 
I  am  well  aware  that  we  may  press  the  question  of  organi- 
zation too  far,  but  at  the  same  time  I  remember  that  our 
God  is  a  God  of  order,  and  that  a  perfect  piece  of  machin- 
ery may  be  so  yielded  to  him  as  that  we  would  lose  all 
thought  of  the  machinery  and  stand  amazed  at  the  exhi- 
bition of  power. 

(a)  The  church  officers  must  be  enlisted  in  this  special 
service  for  Christ.  Would  it  not  be  possible  for  the  pastor 
to  meet  his  officers  before  he  preached,  and  that  they  then 
pray  for  the  blessing  of  God  upon  his  sermon  ?  Would  it 
not  be  feasible  for  pastor  and  church  officers  to  have  at 
least  one  meeting  a  month  when  only  prayer  should  be 
offered  for  God's  guidance  of  the  church?  In  some 
churches  this  plan  has  been  adopted,  and  now^here  has  it 
been  known  to  fail. 

(b)  The  men  of  the  church  must  be  enlisted.  Whatever 
may  be  said  to  the  contrary  this  is  the  testimony  of 
workers  who  have  been  successful  in  reaching  men  foi 
Christ,  the  work  must  be  done  through  men.  I  am  not 
unmindful  of  the  power  of  a  mother's  prayer,  of  a  wife's 
example,  but  never  until  the  rnen  ar.e  enlisted,  banded 
together,  thoroughly  consecrated  and  filled  with  the  Holy 
Ghost  may  we  expect  the  ingathering  from  their  ranks. 

(c)  The  sympathies  of  the  young  people  should  be  en- 
listed. Is  it  not  a  practical  thing  to  suggest  that  for  at 
least  three  months  of  time  the  young  people  of  our 
churches  should  seek  to  win  their  comrades  and  com- 
panions for  Christ?  This  could  be  done  in  many  cases  if 
the  pastor  and  the  church  officers  would  show  their  sym- 
pathy by  their  presence,  would  counsel  the  young  people 
so  fhat  they  might  be  saved  from  making  grievous  mis- 
takes.   The  young  people  of  our  churches  might  be  com- 


In  North  Carolina.  159 

pletely  transformed  if  this  mission  were  held  up  before 
them. 

(d)  The  Sunday-school  should  be  counted  an  evange- 
lizing agency.  Since  it  is  true  that  the  majority  of  the 
people  coming  into  the  church  come  from  the  ranks  of  the 
Sunday-school  scholars,  we  have  an  illustration  which  to 
say  the  least  is  forceful,  but  we  have  only  begun  our  work 
in  this  direction.  The  majority  of  people  in  the  church 
to-day  come  to  Christ  before  they  are  twenty  years  of 
age,  and  if  we  miss  the  organization  of  our  Sunday- 
schools  along  this  line  we  are  guilty  at  least  of  a  mistake 
for  which  we  will  one  day  be  called  to  an  account.  Could 
there  not  be  arranged  conferences  with  the  superintend- 
ents and  the  teachers,  the  older  scholars  in  the  school, 
when  prayer  would  be  offered  for  the  unsaved  and  an 
effort  be  made  to  lead  them  to  Christ.  What  we  need, 
however,  is  to  be  definite  in  our  work. 

(e)  The  church  itself  should  be  thoroughly  organized. 
Is  there  any  better  suggestion  to  be  made  than  that  con- 
cerning the  circle  of  prayer? 

How  TO  Form  a  Prayer  Circle. 

1.  Dedicate  yourself  to  God  for  this  service  of  inter- 
cession. 

2.  Ask  him  for  the  anointing  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  that 
you  may  be  "a  vessel  unto  honor^  sanctified  and  meet  for 
the  Master's  use,  and  prepared  unto  'this'  work." 

3.  Ask  that  you  may  be  guided  as  to  whom  you  should 
invite  to  join  the  circle  of  prayer. 

4.  In  prayer  seek  for  guidance  as  to  all  details  of  indi- 
vidual or  collective  prayer,  such  as  times  of  prayer  or 
meeting  together  and  subjects. 

5.  Watch  for  answers,  and  any  indications  of  answers, 
to  the  prayers  offered ;   but  do  not  be  discouraged  if  defi- 


i6o  The  Presbyterian  Church 

nite  answers  be  delayed.  Intercessory  prayer  often  re- 
quires the  exercise  of  much  faith  and  patience. 

Why  should  it  not  be  possible  for  the  pastor  of  the 
church  to  call  upon  his  members  to  unite  with  him  in  a 
prayer  circle,  and  perhaps  have  numerous  circles  in  his 
congregation,  which  should  meet  from  time  to  time  with 
some  degree  of  regularity  ?  In  many  parts  of  our  country 
this  is  already  done  and  some  of  our  most  successful 
pastors  are  following  this  line  of  work. 

Second.  The  evangelistic  church  is  a  spiritual  church, 
and  that  church  may  be  counted  spiritual  in  which  the 
Holy  Ghost  has  his  rightful  place.  If  we  should  make  it 
a  rule  in  our  churdhes  to  devise  no  plans,  adopt  no 
methods  without  these  things  were  all  submitted  to  God, 
and  we  were  conscious  of  his  approval  a  new  day  would 
dawn  upon  us.  That  church  is  spiritual  in  which  the 
minister  as  well  as  a  goodly  number  of  the  church  people 
are  wholly  surrendered  to  Christ.  When  (he  has  the  right 
of  way  in  our  lives  blessing  will  surely  follow  and  the 
unsaved  in  large  numbers  will  be  won  to  him. 

The  Church  Service. 

There  is  much  criticism  to-day  concerning  the  Church, 
which  is  positively  unjust.  It  is  quite  useless  to  say  that 
there  are  no  flaws  in  the  present  organization  as  men  can 
see  it,  but  it  is  also  equally  true  that  in  the  best  ordered 
homes,  in  those  households  where  there  is  the  greatest 
amount  of  peace  and  comfort,  there  are  elements  of  weak- 
ness. One  could  break  up  his  home  in  less  than  three 
months  if  he  should  parade  the  flaws  of  his  home  life 
before  all  who  would  listen  to  him.  It  is  both  unjust  to 
the  Church  and  disloyal  to  Christ  for  one  to  keep  con- 
stantly harping  upon  the  weakness  of  our  church  life, 


In  North  Carolina.  i6i 

when  there  is  so  much  on  the  other  side  to  arouse  en- 
thusiasm and  to  provoke  the  most  generous  affection, 
and  yet  without  having  the  least  spirit  of  harsh  criticism, 
it  is,  alas,  also  true  that  concerning  the  services  of  our 
Church,  the  following  may  be  justly  stated: 

First :  The  service  is  too  formal.  Formality  is  gen- 
erally observed  at  the  expense  of  spiritual  power  and 
life.  In  very  many  of  our  churches  from  one  year's  end 
to  the  other,  there  is  no  variation  of  the  service.  An 
invocation,  frequently  singing  by  a  choir  which  cannot 
be  understood,  three  hymns  by  the  congregation  sung  in 
a  half-hearted  manner  in  many  of  our  churches,  two 
prayers  by  the  minister,  one  short  and  the  other  long, 
a  sermon  of  varying  length,  a  benediction,  and  the  ser- 
vice is  over.  It  is  inconceivable  that  the  man  of  the 
world  who  cares  nothing  for  the  sentiment  of  the  ser- 
vice and  who  feels  no  special  obligation  to  attend  church, 
should  be  interested  by  that  which  he  knows  will  be  the 
same  whether  he  attends  the  service  on  the  Atlantic 
Coast,  on  the  Pacific,  in  the  northern  portion  of  our  coun- 
try or  in  the  extreme  south.  It  would  be  far  from  me 
to  wish  too  great  an  informality  in  the  worship  of  God 
and  the  conduct  of  the  services  of  his  sanctuary,  but  I 
am  quite  sure  that  the  time  is  upon  us  when  if  we  would 
attract  attention  to  him  who  is  able  to  save  to  the  utter- 
most, we  must  do  the  unusual  thing. 

One  of  our  great  Scotch  preachers  has  said  that  the 
disposition  which  some  of  us  have  to  pray  regularly  three 
times  a  day,  is  well  enough  in  itself,  but  may  not  ac- 
complish its  purpose,  for  the  devil  knows  concerning  our 
purpose,  and  he  says  that  man  will  pray  at  morning,  at 
noon  and  at  night,  and  whenever  he  prays  I  will  be  there 
to  attract  his  attention  to  other  things,  and  his  prayer  will 
be  lifeless  and  indifferent.     Could  he  not  say  the  same 


i62  The  Presbyterian  Church 

thing  concerning  some  of  the  services  of  our  churches? 
If  he  knows  anything  at  all,  he  must  know  just  what  we 
are  going  to  do,  for  we  know  this  ourselves. 

John  Robertson,  the  Scotch  preacher,  some  little  time 
ago,  preached  a  sermon  on  that  text  found  in  i  Peter  ii.  7 : 
"Unto  you  therefore  which  believe  he  is  precious,"  and 
he  said  if  the  verse  should  be  rightly  read  it  would  be 
like  this,  "Unto  you  therefore  \vhich  believe,"  then  there 
is  a  break  in  the  manuscript,  or  a  pause,  and  the  word, 
"Precious,"  might  be  translated  "preciousness,"  or  to 
change  it  again,  it  might  be  translated  ''Hallelujah,"  and 
his  interpretation  was  that  Peter  is  writing  along  in  his 
message  and  finds  himself  saying,  "Unto  you  therefore 
which  believe,"  and  suddenly  there  came  to  him  a  vision 
of  the  one  who  had  chosen  him  to  be  his  follower  and 
sent  him  forth  to  preach,  had  forgiven  him  his  wander- 
ings, and  sent  a  special  messenger  after  his  resurrection, 
and  he  is  so  full  of  emotion  that  suddenly  he  breaks  forth 
with  an  exclamation  of,  "preciousness  or  hallelujah." 
Such  a  break  as  this  in  the  service  of  an  ordinary  church 
w^ould  be  counted  a  most  extraordinary  thing,  but  I  can 
conceive  that  there  might  come  into  a  church  a  great  in- 
fusion of  new  life  if  there  should  be  a  disposition  on 
the  part  of  those  who  preach  and  teach  to  yield  them- 
selves more  perfectly  to  him  who  witnesses  to  Christ  and 
allow  him  to  have  his  way  with  us  and  through  us,  in- 
stead of  our  own  will  concerning  that  which  might  be 
proper  in  our  judgment. 

Again,  may  it  not  be  said  that  the  Church  is  too  cold. 
There  are  certain  things  which  may  cause  this  condition. 
Following  Christ  afar  off  would  make  it  possible;  com- 
ing in  touch  with  the  world  would  produce  it  as  an  in- 
evitable result ;  even  indifference  would  not  be  without 
influence  in  the  production  of  such  a  state  of  affairs.     I 


In  North  Carolina.  163 

can  think  of  no  one  thing  that  would  so  bring  new  Ufe  to 
the  Church,  warmth  to  the  preacher  and  a  glow  of  en- 
thusiasm to  every  department  of  service  as  the  cuUi- 
vation  of  the  spirit  of  evangehsm,  or  in  other  words,  a 
devotion  of  the  membership  of  the  Church  to  the  winning 
of  souls  to  Christ. 

Mr.  Spurgeon  used  to  tell  of  a  census  taker  who  went 
about  the  city  of  London,  particularly  in  his  part  of  the 
great  city,  to  secure  such  information  as  might  be  valu- 
able to  his  workers.  He  found  an  old  couple  living  in 
an  attractive-looking  house,  everything  outside  was  neat 
and  inside  it  was  almost  perfect.  The  old  people  were 
sitting  on  either  side  of  a  fire-place,  so  far  as  the  visitor 
could  see,  in  perfect  comfort,  and  wdien  the  questions  had 
been  answered  he  said  to  them,  'T  should  think  you  would 
be  very  happy.  You  are  away  from  the  turmoil  of  life, 
you  have  fought  your  battles  and  won  your  victories,  and 
you  are  here  now  in  the  evening  time  of  your  existence 
together,  with  naught  to  disturb  you  or  make  you  afraid," 
and  the  old  lady  made  response,  saying:  ''Well,  we  are 
not  happy;  we  used  to  be,  when  we  heard  the  sounds  of 
children's  voices  about  the  house,  but  now  we  are  here 
alone,  and  we  have  neither  chick  nor  child  about  us.  We 
sit  here  all  the  day  long,  my  husband  and  I :  he  looks  at 
me  and  I  look  at  him,  until  we  almost  grow  sick  of  the 
sight  of  each  other.  Oh,"  she  said,  "if  we  could  only 
hear  the  children  again  we  would  have  joy."  .This  is 
a  picture  of  many  a  church  with  the  minister  preaching  to 
the  people  and  the  people  simply  looking  at  him,  until 
sometimes  he  feels  that  he  would  welcome  anything  if 
only  the  church  would  be  aroused,  the  formality  driven 
away  and  the  coldness  depart.  I  know  of  nothing  that 
would  cause  this  result  to  be  so  quickly  apparent  as  to 


164  The  Presbyterian  Church 

hear  the  sound  of  the  voices  of  those  who  are  new-born 
babes  in  Christ  Jesus. 

A  soul  winning  church  is  never  a  church  spiritually 
cold.     The  two  positions  are  positively  irreconcilable. 

May  it  not  also  be  true  that  the  Church  is  too  indefinite 
in  its  work.  Wherever  there  is  a  successful  church  to- 
day, without  exception  that  church  wall  be  found  to  be 
carrying  on  a  definite  work,  both  at  home  and  abroad. 
The  minister  plans  his  w^ork  and  w^orks  his  plan.  If  he 
preaches  a  series  of  sermons,  it  is  in  order  that  some 
result  may  be  accomplished  not  only  in  the  present,  but 
in  the  future;  if  he  has  a  social  gathering,  it  is  in  order 
that  through  this  gathering  he  may  accomplish  some  other 
purpose ;  if  he  makes  pastoral  calls,  it  is  because  he  earn- 
estly hopes  to  bring  his  influence  to  bear  upon  his  people 
to  lead  them  to  take  some  new  position  for  aggressive 
work  for  Christ.  If  business  men  must  plan  their  busi- 
ness, and  they  must,  then  why  should  not  the  leaders  of 
the  Church  plan  their  work,  which  is  more  important 
than  any  business  in  the  w^orld  to-day,  for  the  King's 
business  not  only  requires  haste,  but  requires  ingenuity 
and  careful  planning.  Why  would  it  not  be  possible  at 
the  beginning  of  the  church  year  for  the  minister  and  his 
officers  to  definitely  decide  that  every  aim  and  every 
effort  throughout  the  year  should  be  to  accomplish  cer- 
tain definite  spiritual  results,  and  for  this  they  w^ould 
plan  and  pray  and  work. 

Nothing  is  so  inspiring  as  the  music  of  the  church  ser- 
vice, and  nothing  can  be  more  distressing.  It  is  quite 
as  inconsistent  to  have  an  unconverted  choir  as  to  have 
an  unconverted  minister,  for  both  lead  in  the  worship  of 
God.  It  is  just  as  reasonable  for  a  minister  to  preach 
in  an  unknown  tongue  as  for  a  choir  to  sing  after  this 
fashion,  and  it  is  almost  the  exception  rather  than  the 


In  North  Carolina.  165 

rule  to  understand  many  of  the  choirs  of  our  important 
churches.  Sometimes  the  music  fails  because  the  words 
and  the  music  clash;  sometimes  it  fails  because  the  sub- 
ject of  the  hymn  is  utterly  foreign  to  the  main  part  of 
the  service,  and  frequently  it  fails  because  we  attach 
too  little  importance  to  it  as  an  element  in  reaching  and 
influencing  the  lives  of  the  people.  It  is  quite  true  that 
the  theology  of  very  many  people  is  obtained  from  the 
hymns  they  sing.  Little  children  singing  ''Alas  and  did 
my  Saviour  bleed,"  catch  an  idea  of  the  atonement ;  when 
they  sing,  "J^sus  paid  it  all,"  they  begin  to  have  some 
conception  of  justification,  and  under  the  influence  of, 
''Nearer  my  God  to  thee,"  they  learn  great  lessons  of 
fellowship  with  Christ.  It  is  said  that  one  of  the  most 
attractive  features  of  Mr.  Spurgeon's  service  was  the 
singing  of  his  great  congregation,  when  no  choir  took  the 
place  of  the  singing  of  the  people,  and  when  even  an 
organ  was  dispensed  with  in  order  that  the  people  might 
stand  together  and  praise  God,  as  they  did  in  a  most 
wonderful  way,  and  yet  what  could  be  better  than  the 
choir  of  singers,  consecrated  to  Christ,  enthusiastic  in 
their  singing,  because  they  realized  that  next  to  the  min- 
ister they  have  to  do  with  the  reaching  of  the  people, 
and  in  many  cases  beyond  the  minister,  they  have  a 
power  over  the  unsaved. 

"It  is  impossible  to  hold  the  unconverted  masses  with- 
out interesting  them.  In  gaining  this  purpose,  the  power 
of  song  has,  in  France,  proved  most  effective.  The 
Moody  and  Sankey  songs  are  translated  and  sung  quite 
as  much  in  Paris  as  in  New  York.  The  wanderers  on 
fhe  street  at  night  can  be  thus  attracted.  These  songs  are 
open  to  criticism  on  grounds  of  reverence  and  truthful- 
ness, as  well  as  of  aesthetics.     But  for  their  purpose  of 


i66  The  Presbyterian  Church 

drawing  and  holding  the  masses,   they  are   unequalled. 
Scores  of  people  will  come  off  the  street  to  sing 

"  The  half  was  never  told,' 

who  would  turn  away  from  the  most  eloquent  sermon."^ 

What  power  there  could  be  for  good  if  frequently  in 
the  Sunday  evening  services  at  least  sweet  Gospel  hymns 
should  be  announced,  the  whole  congregation  asked  to 
sing,  occasionally  a  solo  sung  by  one  who  had  prayed 
over  the  singing  as  the  pastor  ought  to  pray  over  his 
preaching.  If  the  preaching  of  the  Church  to-day  needs 
to  be  turned  into  evangelistic  channels,  there  is  far  great- 
er necessity  for  insisting  that  the  singing  should  be  more 
evangelistic. 

Mr.  Moody  was  a  shrewd  leader  of  men,  and  there 
were  few  men  who  ever  went  beyond  him  in  exalting  the 
power  of  the  singing  of  a  hymn  in  which  there  was  to 
be  found  the  spirit  of  the  Gospel.  The  preaching  is,  of 
course,  the  important  part  of  the  entire  service,  for  by  the 
foolishness  of  preaching  God  has  ordained  ^that  men 
should  come  to  know  Christ  and  to  understand  his  beau- 
ty, but  there  are  certain  points  which  must  be  emphasized 
in  connection  with  the  preaching  which  is  to  be  evangel- 
istic in  its  purpose. 

First:  The  truth  preached  must  be  experienced.  No 
man  can  talk  with  any  success  about  prayer  and  be 
prayerless,  about  consecration  and  withhold  his  gift  from 
the  altar,  about  love  for  souls  and  himself  be  indifferent 
to  lost  men. 

"No  one  preaches  the  truth  with  power  until  he  has 
had  a  deep  personal  experience  of  its  power.  The  truths 
which  were  so  mighty  on  the  lips  of  Luther  and  Wesley 

^  "The  working  church." 


In  North  Carolina.  167 

and  Finney  and  Moody  had  first  been  mighty  in  their 
own  hearts.  Suppose  we  ministers  begin  with  ourselves, 
and  make  sure  that  we  are  ready  for  disinterested  service ; 
make  it  quite  sure  that  we  ourselves  have  been  to  Gol- 
gotha, and  have  there  been  crucified,  so  that  we  are  dead, 
and  the  life  in  us  is  the  hfe  of  Christ;  make  it  quite  sure 
that  our  own  hearts  are  aglow  with  the  love  that  over- 
flows to  God  and  man.  Then  we  may  expect  that  these 
neglected  truths  of  Jesus  will  be  preached  to  the  churches 
with  mighty  power  until  church  membership  really  stands 
for  Christian  service,  Christian  sacrifice  and  Christian 
love.  And  then  this  Gospel  of  God  will  indeed  be  the 
power  of  God  unto  salvation  to  the  multitudes  to  whom 
he  is  now  unreal. 

"When  God  becomes  real  to  men,  the  guilt  of  sin  be- 
comes real ;  and,  as  we  have  seen,  God  is  actualized  when 
he  is  interpreted  in  the  terms  of  present-day  truth  and  in 
the  every-day  life  of  living  epistles." 

Second :  Christ  must  be  preached  in  all  his  fullness.  It 
will  not  do  to  ignore  any  part  of  the  scheme  of  redemp- 
tion. One  might  just  as  truly  err  in  being  over-zealous  in 
what  is  properly  called  evangelistic  services,  as  being 
indifferent  on  the  other  side  to  the  necessity  of  preaching 
what  we  call  the  old,  old  story  of  Jesus  and  his  love. 
Truth  is  always  pow^erful  if  it  is  preached  in  all  of  its 
fullness. 

"  The  rapid  growth  of  'Christian  Science,'  so-called,  is 
a  reaction  from  a  Christianity  which  ignores  the  physi- 
cal, and  therefore  does  not  recognize  the  interrelation  of 
soul  and  body;  precisely  as  Unitarianism  was  a  reaction 
from  an  orthodoxy  which  practically  ignored  the  humanity 
of  our  Lord ;  and  reactions  are  naturally  one-sided  and 
extreme.  The  remedy  for  them  is  to  preach  the  well- 
rounded  truth.     We  are  slowly  learning  by  costly  exper- 


i68  The  Presbyterian  Church 

ience  that  no  great  Scriptural  truth  can  be  safely  neg- 
lected ;  sooner  or  later  it  appears  in  caricature."^ 

Yet  there  is  this  to  be  said,  and  it  must  be  said  with 
emphasis,  that  for  one  who  is  in  sin  and  therefore  abso- 
lutely lost  there  is  no  story  whidh  can  keep  and  lift  and 
save  but  the  story  of  the  crucified  one. 

Dr.  Jowett,  of  Birmingham,  England,  tells  the  story  of 
the  late  Dr.  Berry  which  illustrates  my  point.  He  returned 
from  his  service  one  day  to  find  a  child  waiting  at  his 
door  who  asked  him  if  he  would  not  come  at  once  and 
help  to  get  her  mother  in.  He  did  not  understand  iher  re- 
quest, thinking  possibly  she  was  in  the  cold  and  had  been 
turned  out  of  her  home,  but  at  last  in  response  to  her 
earnest  entreaties  he  went  and  found  the  mother  dying. 
He  did  what  he  could  to  help  her,  but  seemed  utterly 
powerless.  He  told  the  story  of  the  Prodigal  Son,  but  she 
seemed  uninterested.  He  brought  to  her  attention  the 
story  of  the  reclaiming  of  fallen  women  and  Christ  bless- 
ing the  little  children,  that  she  might  know  that  there  was 
no  one  so  weak  and  no  one  so  sinful  as  to  be  beyond  the 
power  of  his  love,  and  she  was  still  unmoved,  and  at  last 
he  said  to  his  friend,  ^he  drew  out  of  me  bit  by  bit  the 
story  of  Jesus  born  in  Bethlehem,  living  In  Nazareth, 
preaching  in  Galilee,  suffering  in  Jerusalem,  dying  on  the 
cross,  rising  from  the  dead  and'  ascending  into  glory,  and^ 
as  I  told  her  the  story  her  eyes  filled  with  tears  and  her 
lips  trembled  and  then  there  came  a  look  of  ineffable  peace 
and  joy,  and  she  passed  away,  and  said  Dr.  Berry  to  his 
friend,  "I  believe  I  got  her  In." 

This  Is  the  only  story  for  a  lost  and  ruined  race,  and  we 
cannot  be  evangelistic  if  we  neglect  it,  nor  can  we  expect 
God  to  bless  us  in  the  winning  of  souls. 

1  "The  next  great  awakening." 


In  North  Carolina.  169 

Third.  Preaching,  to  be  evangelistic,  must  be  done  with 
the  confident  expectation  of  results.  .The  unsaved  people 
in  our  congregation  are  quick  to  detect  our  own  anticipa- 
tion of  failure ;  they  are  equally  sensitive  to  our  confident 
belief  that  what  we  say  is  to  have  weight  with  them  and 
may  be  used  of  God  to  save  their  souls. 

Over  in  the  almost  midnight  darkness  of  Africa  toiled 
Robert  and  Mary  Moffatt ;  for  ten  years  they  labored  on 
without  a  single  convert.  They  were  four  hundred  miles 
beyond  the  place  of  civilization.  They  had  only  about 
them  the  most  degraded  savages,  yet  they  never  for  a 
moment  faltered  and  never  for  a  single  moment  did  they 
have  any  other  thought  than  this,  that  they  were  sure  to 
be  successful.  A  letter  was  received  from  a  friend  asking 
if  there  was  anything  of  use  w^hich  could  be  sent  by  their 
minister.  "  The  significant  answer  of  Mary  Mof¥att  was, 
'Send  us  a  communion  service.  We  shall  want  it  some 
day.'  It  came  three  years  later,  the  day  before  the  first 
converts  were  baptized." 

With  such  a  spirit  as  this  in  the  preaching,  with 
supreme  confidence  in  God  and  in  his  Word,  w4tli  absolute 
certainty  that  if  Christ  be  preached  faithfully  God's  Word 
cannot  return  unto  him  void,  there  must  be  increased  effi- 
ciency in  our  church  services  and  great  numbers  of  people 
brought  to  Christ.  Yet  if  the  church  of  Christ  could  only 
be  aroused  to  put  into  practice  his  preaching  and  teaching 
in  this  present  day,  and  other  days,  how  men  would  be 
helped,  how  souls  would  be  won  and  how  the  very  wilder- 
ness would  blossom  as  a  rose. 

"  Let  us  suppose  a  church  somewhere,  whose  members 
have  such  an  enthusiasm  for  humanity  that  when  they  lie 
awake  nights  they  are  planning  not  how  to  make  money, 
but  how  to  make  men.  Their  supreme  desire  is  to  help 
the  world  in  general  and  their  own  community  in  particu- 


170  The  Presbyterian  Church 

lar.  They  are  striving  daily  to  remove  every  moral  and 
physical  evil ;  tr}ang  to  give  every  child  who  comes  into 
the  world  the  best  possible  chance ;  longing  and  working 
and  praying  and  spending  themselves  and  their  substance 
to  save  men  from  sin  and  ignorance  and  suffering!  Let 
us  suppose  the  whole  church  is  co-operating  to  this  end. 
What  a  transformation  such  a  church  would  work  in  any 
community !  How  it  would  'reach  the  masses' !  How  it 
would  grow !  How  it  would  be  talked  about  and  written 
up!  Men  would  make  pilgrimages  to  study  its  workings 
and  its  success.  Yet  such  a  church  ought  not  to  be  in  the 
least  degree  peculiar."^  And  such  a  church  as  this  is 
possible  in  every  community  in  the  world  if  only  the  Word 
of  God  is  received  as  authentic,  if  only  Christ  is  believed 
on  and  his  teachings  practiced.  That  such  a  church  is  not 
to  be  seen  to-day  in  many  of  our  cities  and  towns  is  to  our 
reproach. 

1  "The  next  great  awakening." 


REV.  S.   L.   MORRIS,   D.   D. 


HOME  MISSIONS,  THE  SUPREME 
NEED  OF  THE  HOUR. 

Rev.  S.  L.  Morris,  D.  D.,  Secretary. 

The  history  of  the  church  is  a  history  of  missions.  Its 
ratio  of  progress  has  always  been  measured  by  its  mis- 
sionary activity.  The  decline  of  the  missionary  spirit  is 
the  signal  for  stagnation.  It  is  the  glory  of  the  Presby- 
terian church  that  it  is  a  missionary  organization,  whose 
purpose  aims  at  nothing  short  of  the  conquest  of  the 
world  for  Christ;  and  this  task  will  be  accomplished 
largely  by  impressing  the  individual  with  his  individual 
responsibility  as  a  member  of  a  missionary  organization. 
Loyalty  to  Christ  can  be  maintained  only  by  the  accept- 
ance of  Christ's  authority  as  the  head  of  the  church  and 
obedience  to  Christ's  marching  orders — ''Go  ye  into  all 
the  world  and  preach  the  Gospel  to  every  creature."  Dis- 
obedience is  rebellion ;  and  indifference  is  the  very  es- 
sence of  disobedience. 

The  division  of  the  subject  into  Home  and  Foreign 
Missions  is  a  human  distinction,  which  may  be  justified 
by  the  necessities  of  administration  and  the  distribution 
of  the  work,  but  is  not  strictly  scriptural.  In  Christ's 
analysis  of  the  subject  one  shades  off  gradually  into  the 
other ;  and  Foreign  Missions  is  simply  an  extension  of  the 
work  to  its  farthest  Hmits.  "  Ye  shall  be  witnesses  unto 
me  both  in  Jerusalem  and  in  all  Judea,  and  in  Samaria, 
and  unto  the  uttermost  part  of  the  earth."  "J^^^^^alem 
and  all  Judea,"  are  unquestionably  what  we  denominate 
Home  Missions;  and  ''The  uttermost  part  of  the  earth" 


172  The  Presbyterian  Church 

certainly  contemplates  Foreign  Missions ;  whilst  "  Sa- 
maria" is  the  connecting  link  between  them,  partaking 
partly  of  the  character  of  each.  "  Samaria"  corresponds 
to  the  foreigners  in  our  land — Alexicans  in  Texas,  Indians 
of  Oklahoma  and  "the  regions  beyond"  our  organized 
Presbyteries.  It  is  Foreign  Missions  at  home!  Many 
professing  Christians  "do  not  believe  in  Foreign  Mis- 
sions/' but  that  is  no  evidence  that  they  will  support  the 
work  of  the  church  in  the  home  field.  It  amounts  to 
nothing  more  than  an  excuse  to  shirk  the  duty  of  con- 
tributing to  Foreign  Missions.  Equally  inconsistent  are 
the  Christians  who  rave  over  the  Africans  on  the  banks 
of  the  Congo,  and  are  absolutely  indifferent  to  the  nine 
millions  of  Africans  at  their  own  door.  The  highest  type 
of  Christians  are  they  who  estimate  the  value  of  a  lost 
soul  in  terms  of  the  Gospel  and  in  the  mathematics  of 
heaven,  regarding  the  most  degraded  soul  in  heathendom 
of  equal  worth  with  the  most  refined  in  civilization,  and 
considering  the  most  cultured  unsaved  soul  in  Christen- 
dom as  truly  lost  as  the  meanest  in  Africa  or  China. 

Christ  combined  in  his  own  person  both  Home  and 
Foreign  Missions.  In  his  divinity  as  the  Son  of  God, 
he  was  a  foreign  missionary,  a  volunteer  from  heaven  to 
the  heathen  of  earth.  In  his  humanity,  as  the  son  of  man, 
he  was  a  home  missionary  solely,  who  never  went  beyond 
his  native  Palestine.  In  his  command  he  laid  the  em- 
phasis first  on  Home  Missions,  "  Beginning  at  Jerusalem," 
but  that  emphasis  reaches  "unto  the  uttermost  part  of  the 
earth."  The  disciples  in  carrying  out  the  instructions  of 
the  Master  went  first  "to  the  lost  sheep  of  the  house  of 
Israel,"  but  they  inaugurated  at  the  same  time  the  scheme 
of  world-wide  evangelism.  In  one  sense,  Paul  was  the 
grandest  of  all  Foreign  Missionaries  who  turned  from 
Israel  to  preach  Christ  to  the  Gentiles ;  and  yet,  in  another 


In  North  Carolina.  173 

sense  he  was  as  truly  a  home  missionary,  for  he  was  a 
citizen  of  the  Roman  Empire  and  never  left  its  confines. 
Home  Missions  are  always  a  means  tow^ard  an  end.  Its 
motto  is  "Save  America  to  save  the  world." 

I.  Home  Missions  are  the  basis  of  all  denominational 
growth.  A  church  may  do  a  magnificent  work  for  For- 
eign Missions,  and  yet  stand  still,  w^hilst  other  denomina- 
tions are  growing  rapidly  on  every  side,  as  is  the  case  of 
the  Moravian  Church.  If  this  noble  church  had  carriea 
on  the  work  at  home  and  abroad  pari  passu,  how  much 
sooner  it  would  have  reached  ''unto  the  uttermost  part 
of  the  earth."  If  the  same  zeal  for  Foreign  Missions  had 
characterized  its  efforts  to  expand  at  home,  it  would 
to-day  number  doubtless  more  than  a  million  communi- 
cants. If  its  small  membership  is  winning  the  admiration 
of  the  world,  what  magnificent  results  would  have  blessed 
the  efforts  of  a  million  !  The  denominations  to-day  which 
lead  all  others  in  the  number  of  their  communicants  in  the 
United  States  are  those  who  are  conspicuous  in  their  zeal 
for  Home  Missions.  There  is  no  surer  method  of  propa- 
gating the  faith  of  a  church  and  no  more  rapid  means  of 
advancing  into  every  nook  and  corner  of  the  country  than 
by  Home  Missions.  If  as  a  church  we  are  to  expand  with 
the  expansion  and  development  of  this  great  country; 
if  we  are  to  reach  the  millions  yet  unborn ;  if  we  are  to 
influence  by  our  religious  life  and  thought  the  destiny  of 
our  cosmopolitan  populations ;  if  we  are  to  multiply  our- 
selves a  hundred  or  a  thousand  fold  in  the  coming  cen- 
turies, we  must  begin  at  once  by  means  of  Home  Missions 
to  sow  the  seed  "beside  all  waters."  In  the  early  days  of 
Christianity  it  was  a  proverb,  "The  blood  of  the  martyrs 
is  the  seed  of  the  church."  It  is  as  true  to-day,  that  the 
propagation  of  the  faith  costs  the  very  life  blood  of  the 
church.     It  means  life-long  martyrdom  in  hardships,  suf- 


174  The  Presbyterian  Church 

fering,  toil  and  self-sacrifice  on  tne  part  of  our  humble 
unappreciated  home  missionaries,  who  "have  borne  the 
burden  and  heat  of  the  day,"  and  prepared  the  way  for 
our  city  pastors,  who  reap  harvests  upon  which  they  "be- 
stowed no  labor,"  illustrating  the  saying  of  Christ,  "Other 
men  labored  and  ye  are  entered  into  their  labors."  As 
others  prepared  the  way  for  us,  so  we  should  lay  founda- 
tions for  future  generations  in  a  great  wide-spread  Home 
Mission  campaign,  which  will  mean  the  multiplication  of 
our  religious  forces  in  an  ever-increasing  geometrical  pro- 
gression to  parallel  the  marvellous  progress  of  this  most 
strenuous  of  nations. 

2.  Home  Missions  are  the  supreme  need  of  the  hour, 
if  we  are  to  reach  the  myriads  who  are  perishing  in  our 
boasted  Christian  country.  It  is  easy  enough  to  soothe 
our  conscience  with  the  thought  that  in  this  land  of  Gospel 
privileges  any  man  can  hear  the  message  oT  salvation 
who  will.  But  does  that  end  our  responsibility?  Is  it 
enough  to  ring  the  church  bell  and  announce  in  the  daily 
papers,  ''  Seats  free  and  all  cordially  invited"  ?  Does  the 
responsibility  of  bringing  m.en  to  Christ  terminate  with 
their  opportunities  to  attend  service  and  our  invitations 
to  church?  Is  there  any  greater  obligation  to  go  ''into 
all  the  world  and  preach  the  Gospel  to  every  creature" 
than  to  go  out  "into  the  highways  and  hedges  and  compel 
them  to  come  in"?  Can  the  great  city  church  feel  that  it 
has  met  its  obligation  to  Christ  and  lost  souls  by  erecting 
its  handsome  church  edifice  for  the  enjoyment  of  its  own 
religious  privileges,  and  sending  its  representative  to  the 
foreign  field,  whilst  multitudes  are  perishing  almost 
within  the  sound  of  its  church  bells  ?  Are  we  prepared  to 
answer  the  question  of  Jehovah,  "  Where  is  thy  brother?" 
by  denying  our  responsibility,  and  in  indifference  raising 
the  indignant  challenge,  "Am  I  my  brother's  keeper"? 


In  North  Carolina.  175 

Who  are  these  lost  in  our  Christian  land,  for  whom  we 
have  any  kind  of  responsibihty  however  vague  and  in- 
definite? Take  but  the  merest  glance  at  the  multitudes 
in  a  brief  survey  of  the  field : 

It  has  been  estimated  that,  leaving  out  of  the  calculation 
the  membership  of  the  various  branches  of  the  church  and 
the  children  of  immature  years,  there  are  at  least  forty- 
nine  millions  of  unsaved  souls  in  our  very  midst.  It  ex- 
ceeds in  num'ber  the  entire  Empire  of  Japan;  and  they 
are  as  truly  lost  as  the  most  degraded  of  the  dark  con- 
tinent. Are  Home  Missions  of  secondary  importance, 
considering  that  there  is  no  other  means  of  saving  these 
millions  who  are  our  own  kith  and  kin  ?  Already  the  tide 
of  immigration  rolling  in  upon  our  shores  has  passed  the 
million  limit.  The  province  of  God  is  bringing  more  than 
a  million  heathen  annually  into  our  very  midst  and  making 
us  wrestle  with  the  foreign  mission  problem  at  home. 
Far  down  in  the  bowels  of  the  earth  are  the  miners  who 
toil  for  our  comfort,  whilst  their  neglected  children  huddle 
together  in  wretched  villages.  By  day  and  by  night  the 
mill  people  are  chained  to  the  looms  of  our  factories,  till 
they  themselves  are  but  part  of  the  machinery  itself, 
which  enormously  increases  the  wealth  of  the  church, 
that  passes  them  by  in  the  distribution  of  the  bread  of 
life.  Stranded  among  the  mountains  are  more  than  three 
millions  of  people  who  are  descendants  of  the  Scotch-Irish 
practically  without  the  Gospel,  or  having  only  a  carica- 
ture of  it.  Exceeding  even  them  in  number  are  the 
densely  populated  slums  of  our  great  cities,  where  chil- 
dren grow  up  in  as  dense  ignorance  of  the  Gospel  as  if 
born  in  Thibet  or  the  Soudan.  Add  to  this  the  great 
West,  where  the  tides  of  population  roll  in  their  floods  of 
peoples  of  every  conceivable  character.  Professing  Chris- 
tians, once  active  in  church  service,  leaving  their  Chris- 


176  The  Presbyterian  Church 

tian  obligation  behind  them,  and  young  men  free  from 
the  restraints  of  the  home  Hfe,  mingle  together,  controlled 
largely  by  the  passion  for  money-getting,  the  flame  being 
fanned  by  the  business  opportunities  of  a  rapidly  de- 
veloping country.  Mothers  of  the  East  turn  their  aching 
hearts  towards  the  West,  asking  themselves  the  question, 
which  they  fear  to  answer,  "  Where  is  my  wandering  boy 
to-night?"  Is  there  any  other  method  of  reaching  our 
sons  and  daughters  who  have  left  forever  the  parental 
roof  for  contact  and  struggle  with  the  world's  evil  forces, 
than  by  lifting  into  its  appropriate  place  the  neglected 
cause  of  Home  Missions,  till  we  compel  its  consideration 
by  the  church  as  the  supreme  need  of  the  hour  ? 

3.  The  necessity  of  a  new  estimation  and  emphasis  of 
Home  Missions  arises  from  the  Industrial  Awakening  of 
the  South,  the  marvel  of  the  age.  Buildings  are  going 
up  everywhere  in  all  of  our  cities,  and  yet  the  demand 
is  greater  than  the  supply.  In  many  sections  of  the  Pied- 
mont Belt  the  traveller  rides  hundreds  of  miles  and  is  not 
out  of  sight  of  the  smoke  of  a  factory  till  another  comes 
to  view.  Additional  trains  are  added  on  all  of  our  rail- 
roads, and  yet  they  are  so  crowded  as  to  be  uncomfort- 
able. Railroads  cannot  haul  the  freight.  Manufacturers 
have  sold  far  in  advance  of  the  supply,  and  orders  must 
be  placed  months  ahead  to  be  filled.  Demand  for  labor  is 
the  cry  everywhere.  Several  States  have  agents  in 
Europe  offering  a  premium  for  immigrants. 

The  following  items  are  gathered  at  random  from 
Herbert  A.  Smith,  of  the  United  States  Department  of 
Agriculture:  "About  one-seventh  of  the  mineral  produc- 
tion of  the  entire  country  comes  from  the  Southern  States. 
Of  bituminous  coal,  the  most  valuable  mineral,  the  South 
produces  one-fourth;  and  of  iron,  about  one-ninth.  Its 
coal  resources  amount  to  nearly  $600,000,000,000  tons. 


In  North  Carolina.  177 

or  more  than  one-fourth  of  our  estimated  coal  reserve. 
The  showing  in  iron  ore  reserves  is  quite  as  good ;  a  safe 
minimum  is  over  3,000,000,000  tons,  or  nearly  one-third 
of  the  nation's  total.  On  a  basis  of  value  of  product,  the 
South  furnishes  more  than  two-sevenths  of  our  oil,  and 
more  than  one-sixth  of  our  gas.  The  total  value  of  the 
iron  output  in  1905  was  not  quite  $7,000,000.  It  seems 
altogether  safe  to  say  that  the  South  is  now  deriving 
$150,000,000  a  year  gross  from  its  mines  and  quarries." 

The  total  estimated  value  of  timber  trees  in  board  feet 
is  $700,000,000,000.  Farm  products,  $941,599,856;  ani- 
mal products,  $361,495,455.  The  value  of  farm  property 
in  Texas  alone  amounts  to  more  than  $1,000,000,000.  The 
cotton  crop  of  the  South  has  suddenly  doubled  itself  in 
value,  increasing  from  $300,000,000  a  year  to  $600,000,- 
000;  whilst  the  entire  value  of  the  cotton  crop — cotton- 
seed oil  and  kindred  products — amounts  to  $1,000,000,- 
000.  The  cabbage  and  lettuce  crops  of  South  Carolina 
bring  in  larger  sums  than  the  entire  revenue  of  the  State 
before  the  war.  Railroad  mileage  has  increased  from 
$44,087  in  1890  to  $67,129  in  1905  alone  in  the  Southern 
States. 

Clarence  Hamilton  Poe,  in  the  "  World's  Work"  for 
June  says :  "  The  last  fifty  years  have  seen  the  making  of 
a  dozen  new  commonwealths  beyond  the  Mississippi ;  the 
next  fifty  years  will  see  the  remaking  of  a  dozen  old 
commonwealths  below  Mason  and  Dixon's  line.  From 
1900  to  1950  the  South  will  be  the  land  of  opportunity. 
As  our  epic  of  the  nineteenth  century  was  "Winning  the 
West,"  so  our  epic  of  the  twentieth  century  will  be  the 
"Development  of  the  South." 

Taking,  then.  North  Carolina  as  an  illustration,  he  gives 
some  startling  figures — "In  population  North  Carolina 
was  sixteenth  in  rank  among  the  States  in  1890,  fifteenth 


178  The  Presbyterian  Church 

in  1900;  twenty-third  in  rank  as  an  agricultural  State 
in  1890,  it  was  twentieth  in  1900;  ranking  thirty-first  in 
manufacturing  in  1890,  in  1900  it  stood  twenty-eighth. 
For  net  gain  of  rank  in  population,  agriculture  and  manu- 
factures it  was  equalled  by  no  old  State  east  or  west  of  the 
Mississippi,  and  only  the  newest  of  the  new  States  and 
Territories  of  the  West — Oklahoma  and  Montana,  draw- 
ing a  sudden  stream  of  men  and  means  from  all  other 
sections — kept  the  same  pace 

"  In  the  last  five  years  the  people  of  the  State  have  put 
more  money  into  industrial  establishments  than  they  had 
accumulated  in  them  for  the  two  hundred  years  preceding. 
Every  time  the  moon  changes,  they  now  add  as  much  to 
their  property  values  as  they  had  averaged  per  year  prior 
to  1900.  .  .  . 

"  No  longer  content  with  merely  supplying  the  wants 
of  our  own  people,  North  Carolina's  cotton  trade  with 
China  is  now  so  extensive  that  America's  diplomatic 
relations  with  the  Orient  are  of  interest  to  the  entire  State. 
North  Carolina's  tobaccos  are  advertised  on  the  Ganges 
and  the  Nile.  .  .  Some  years  ago  a  man  who  had  failed 
at  another  business  started  a  $3,500  chair  factory  in 
Thomasville.  Three  years  later  one  $500  stockholder 
refused  $5,000  for  his  share  of  it.  Other  factories  sprang 
up,  and  now  the  sun  never  sets  but  that  Thomasville  has 
shipped  a  chair  for  every  man,  woman  and  child  in  the 
towm.  High  Point  was  only  a  straggling  country  village 
fifteen  years  ago,  when  three  young  men  invested  $9,000 
in  furniture  manufacturing.  To-day  it  ranks  next  to 
Grand  Rapids,  Mich.,  in  output  of  furniture;  it  can  fur- 
nish a  house  from  cellar  to  garret  except  the  piano  (it  will 
make  pianos  before  the  end  of  the  year),  and  has  just 
added  street  car  and  automobile  making  to  its  list  of  new 
industries,"  and  so  the  story  goes,  but  time  would  fail  me 


In  North  Carolina.  179 

to  tell  of  similar  enterprise  at  Durham,  Greensboro,  Char- 
lotte, Gastonia,  etc.,  showing  that  'southward  the  star  of 
empire  takes  its  flight.'  " 

These  figures  stagger  us,  and  yet  they  are  just  a  frac- 
tional part  of  our  prosperity.  They  cannot  convey  to 
our  minds  even  the  faintest  conception  of  the  material 
development  and  rapidly  increasing  wealth  of  the  new 
South.  Unless  God  sends  some  disaster  upon  the  country, 
or  in  some  way  stops  the  mill  of  prosperity  that  is  grind- 
ing out  its  products  in  streams  of  gold,  the  human  mind 
can  scarcely  comprehend  the  wealth  of  the  South  fifty 
years  hence.  Who  can  estimate  its  influence  on  the  char- 
acter of  the  people  ?  Is  the  church  keeping  pace  with  this 
material  prosperity? 

4.  This  leads  to  the  concluding  suggestion  that  this 
Industrial  Awakening  of  the  South  calls  for  a  correspond- 
ing spiritual  awakening  of  the  church,  to  the  fact  that 
Home  Missions  is  the  supreme  need  of  the  hour.  How 
otherwise  shall  we  contend  with  the  spirit  of  commercial- 
ism, threatening  to  engulf  the  entire  country  in  its  in- 
satiable vortex  of  destruction.  Tides  of  population  once 
rolling  westward  will  soon  be  sweeping  in  upon  the  South, 
attracted  hither  by  this  marvellous  prosperil;y.  Either  we 
must  evangelize  our  people  or  they  will  commercialize  us. 
Other  Christian  countries  have  degenerated  into  a  mere 
form  of  godliness,  having  lost  absolutely  the  spirit  and 
vital  power  of  Christianity.  Where  is  Jerusalem,  the 
mother  church?  Where  are  Antioch,  Alexandria,  Ephe- 
sus  and  Rome,  once  great  centers  of  religious  life  and 
spiritual  power?  History  repeats  itself;  and  our  Chris- 
tian civilization  may  perish  as  effectually  in  the  grasp  of 
commercialism  as  any  of  the  powerful  churches  in  the 
past,  at  the  hands  of  their  deadly  foes.  The  church  of 
to-day  has  not  a  moment  to  lose.     She  needs  to  gird  her- 


i8o  The  Presbyterian  Church 

self  for  the  tremendous  conflict  of  the  next  quarter  of  a 
century  in  this  country.  If  the  battle  is  lost,  who  can 
forecast  its  influence  on  the  ultimate  destiny  of  the  world  ? 
Who  can  tell  if  it  may  postpone  the  ultimate  triumph 
of  the  Gospel  for  centuries  or  millenniums?  If  never 
before,  we  ought  to  appreciate  the  rallying  cry  of  Home 
iMissions,  "Save  America  to  save  the  world." 

Everything  in  this  age  is  being  projected  on  a  gigantic 
scale.  Great  railroad  combinations  control  the  commerce 
of  whole  States  and  aggregations  of  States.  Great 
monopolies  throttle  and  banish  from  the  field  every  sem- 
blance of  rival  competitors.  Great  institutions  mould 
the  thought  of  the  nation.  Is  it  a  time  for  retrenchment 
in  the  spiritual  world?  Do  not  the  prevailing  conditions 
challenge  the  church  to  put  forth  her  most  Herculean 
efforts  to  meet  powerful  worldly  influences  with  more 
powerful  spiritual  forces  ?  '^Not  by  might,  nor  by  power, 
but  by  my  Spirit,  saith  the  Lord,"  and  yet  the  Spirit  of 
God  uses  means.  God  might  have  employed  legions  of 
angels.  Instead  he  has  ordained  that  the  results  should 
be  accomplished  by  human  instrumentalities  under  the 
operation  of  the  Spirit.  Will  the  church  appreciate  the 
need  of  the  hour  and  undertake  a  campaign  on  a  gigantic 
scale  for  the  purpose  of  saving  America?  Where  are  her 
loyal  and  liberal  sons  who  will  furnish  the  sinews  of  war? 
Carnegie  has  flooded  the  country  with  public  libraries. 
John  D.  Rockefeller  has  contributed  to  Foreign  Missions 
hundreds  of  thousands  of  dollars  and  awakened  an  interest 
in  education  by  endowments  reaching  into  the  millions. 
Hugh  T.  Inman  has  created  an  endcrwment  for  the  relief 
of  aged  and  infirm  ministers,  which  places  them  beyond 
the  reach  of  want.  There  are  millionaires  in  the  church 
who  have  never  yet  awakened  to  the  possibilities  of  spirit- 
ual good  in  their  vast  and  growing  fortunes.    Where  are 


In  North  Carolina.  i8i 

the  men  who  will  immortalize  their  names  by  linking  them 
forever  with  the  great  cause  of  Home  Missions?  Where 
are  the  men  who  will  feel  the  burden  of  their  country  and 
lay  their  thousands  upon  the  altar  of  the  church,  as  in  the 
early  days  of  Christianity,  when  whole  fortunes  were  laid 
at  the  Apostles'  feet.  Better  still,  will  the  entire  church 
awake  to  her  opportunity  of  winning  our  own  nation  for 
Christ  and  her  responsibility  for  countless  lost  souls  at 
our  very  door? 


MISSION  WORK. 

By  Rev.  Wm.  Black. 

Mission  work  is  work  done  by  one  sent,  and,  as  ap- 
plied to  the  gospel,  is  work  done  by  one  sent  by  the  Lord 
Jesus  Christ;  and  in  this  great  work  he,  himself,  was  a 
missionary,  having  been  sent  by  the  Father,  as  is  de- 
clared in  John  iii.  i6;  and  in  announcing  his  own  mission 
he  says:  'The  Son  of  Man  is  come  to  seek  and  to  save 
that  v^hich  was  lost." 

The  right  of  a  church  to  exist  at  all  must  rest  upon 
its  obedience  and  fideHty  to  the  great  principles  enunciated 
by  its  founder,  and  by  which  it  was  authorized.  The 
mission  church  is,  therefore,  the  only  church  which  could 
claim  to  be  following  his  teachings  or  walking  in  his  foot- 
steps. The  greatest  clarion  call  ever  made  to  the  Chris- 
tian is  to  be  found  in  the  w^ords  of  the  Great  Commission, 
and  as  Christ  has  made  that  call  to  the  church,  so  he  has 
commanded  the  church  to  go  forth  on  its  mission,  send- 
ing forth  this  great  call.  To  the  unsaved  she  should  be 
ever  saying  "come,"  and  to  the  Christian,  "go."  Com- 
bining the  words  spoken  by  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ  in  the 
Great  Commission,  as  recorded  in  Matt.,  chapter  xxviii., 
and  Mark,  chapter  xvi.,  w^e  have  substantially  these 
words:  "Go  ye  into  all  the  world,  and  preach  the  gospel 
to  every  creature,  and  make  disciples  of  all  nations,  bap- 
tizing them  in  the  name  of  the  Father,  and  of  the  Son, 
and  of  'the  Holy  Ghost;  teaching  them  to  observe  all 
things  whatsoever  I  have  commanded  you ;  and  lo,  I  am 
with  you  alway,  even  unto  the  end  of  the  world." 


REV.  wm-  bLacK 


In  North  Carolina.  183 

The  spirit  of  Christ  is  the  spirit  of  missions,  but  the 
majority  of  professing  Christians  are  much  more  inter- 
ested in  some  form  of  worldhness  than  in  any  sort  of 
work  for  Christ.    Is  this  not  true  of  you  ? 

It  is  necessary  to  realize  that  every  soul  out  of  Christ 
is  lost.  Do  you  ?  Have  you  seen  the  great  throng  of  men 
and  women — a  thousand  million  of  heathen,  to  say  noth- 
ing of  the  half-million  of  our  own  kith  and  kin  in  North 
Carolina,  out  of  Christ,  marching  down  the  rough  path- 
way of  life  to  eternity,  lost?  Have  you  seen  the  shadows 
of  eternity,  as  they  must  very  soon,  grow  dark  upon 
this  vast  multitude  that  have  not  made  Jesus  their 
friend?  If  so^  are  you  moved  with  compassion  and  pity 
for  them?  If  not,  pray  the  Lord  to  open  your  eyes  that 
you  may  see,  unstop  your  ears,  that  you  may  hear  the 
cry  of  the  lost,  and  say,  "Here  am  I,  send  me.''  This 
realization  is  necessary — in  fact,  is  the  very  main-spring 
and  starting-point  of  all  evangelistic  activity,  and  you 
will  never  be  an  earnest  worker  till  the  vision  of  lost 
souls  has  so  seized  upon  your  own  soul  that  you  cannot 
shake  it  off,  until  you  have  gone  forth  to  their  rescue. 
May  it  come  upon  every  one  who  reads  these  lines,  is 
the  prayer  of  the  writer. 

Let  us,  then,  prayerfully  examine  this  wonderful  com- 
mission, with  a  heart-felt  desire  to  know  more  of  its  re- 
quirements, make  better  use  of  its  privileges,  rejoice 
more  in  its  honors,  and  reap  more  of  its  blessed  rewards. 
It  is  certainly,  not  only  the  most  sacred,  but  the  greatest 
commission  ever  sent  forth,  and  this  is  true  because,  (i) 
Its  source,  being  from  the  King  of  kings  and  Lord  of 
lords.  (2)  The  issue  involved,  eternal  life  and  eternal 
death.  (3)  The  peoples  included,  the  whole  world. 
(4) The  time  it  covers,  to  the  end  of  the  age;  and  lastly, 


184  The  Presbyterian  Church 

the  workers  appointed,  tlie  largest  numbers  and  the  finest 
characters. 

But,  to  be  more  specific,  what  of  its  command?  What 
of  the  duties?    Notice  first,  We  are  to  "Go." 

*'Go  ye/'  is  authority,  not  only  for  the  persons  then 
within  the  sound  of  our  Saviour's  voice,  but  for  every 
person  who  is  to  do  any  sort  of  mission  w^ork  from  then 
until  the  end  of  time ;  but  not  only  is  it  authority  for,  but 
it  is  a  command  to  every  Christian,  that  cannot  be  lightly 
treated  or  set  aside,  but  must  be  obeyed ;  and  it  is  a  com- 
mand, to  be  sure,  to  every  minister  of  the  gospel,  to 
every  church,  and  therefore  to  every  member  of  the 
church ;  it  is  to  the  officers,  and  especially  the  elders  and 
deacons,  to  every  Sunday-school  teacher  and  every  mis- 
sionary society,  and  to  any  and  every  Christian  that  has 
'^Heafd,"  not  only  to  say  ''come,"  but  a  command  to  ''go." 

If,  in  the  Synod  of  North  Carolina,  where  there  are 
186  ministers,  1,440  elders,  1,357  deacons,  3,000  Sunday- 
school  teachers,  and  about  41,000  members,  every  one 
should  hear  and  obey  this  blessed  command,  would  "Go," 
what  a  grand  army  of  workers  there  would  be  for  the 
Lord  Jesus  Christ.  When  we  come  to  consider  that  this 
command  has  been  standing  for  nearly  two  thousand 
years,  and  that  there  are  to-day  more  persons  out  of 
Christ  than  ever  before,  and  when  we  compare  it  with 
the  work  done  in  the  first  century,  it  is  enough  to  make 
us  stand  appalled  at  our  failure.  At  Thessalonica,  the 
enemies  of  Christ  declared  that  these  "two  men  (Paul 
and  Silas)  had  turned  the  zvorld  upside  down."  Oh! 
that  we  Christians  of  to-day  might  be  filled  with  the 
same  love  for  souls,  the  same  spirit  of  the  Master,  and 
the  same  power  to  do  good. 

Let  us  notice  carefully,  too,  that  when  the  Saviour 
says  "Go,"  we  have  not  fulfilled  this  command  simply  by 


In  North  Carolina.  185 

building  churches,  preaching  our  sermons,  teaching  our 
Sunday-school  lessons,  holding  our  missionary  society 
meetings,  and  attending  upon  the  services  ourselves,  un- 
less indeed,  we  have  made  these  exercises  so  attractive 
that  the  unsaved  come  and  hear  and  are  saved,  so  that 
if  the  unsaved  do  not  come  to  the  churches,  we  must  go 
to  them,  or  our  skirts  are  not  clear ;  and  that  they,  very 
many  of  them,  are  not  coming,  are  not  being  reached, 
is  evident,  for  many  of  them  never  darken  a  church  door, 
yet  many  of  us  have  taken  false  comfort  from  the  fact 
that  there  was  a  church,  a  gospel  preached,  and  that  we 
had  helped  in  it;  but  let  us  remember  that  we  are  not 
merely  attempting  to  discharge  a  duty,  but  are  endeavor- 
ing, if  we  have  the  spirit  of  the  Master,  to  reach  the  tin- 
saved.  It  is  one  of  the  saddest  facts  with  which  we  are 
confronted  to-day,  that  the  masses  are  not  being  reached. 
Few  of  the  churches  have  more  than  half  as  many  to 
attend  upon  the  services  as  there  are  communicants 
upon  the  roll,  so  it  is  apparent  that  not  even  the  church 
members  attend  with  any  regularity,  much  less  are  all 
the  church  members  making  any  effort  to  reach  the  un- 
saved. Why  is  this?  Many  reasons  might  be  given, 
but  perhaps  the  best  one  could  be  found  in  the  fact  that 
there  is  a  want  of  powder  to  attract  and  power  to  save 
in  the  multiplied  services,  preaching  and  otherwise,  which 
we  have.  Our  Saviour's  command  was  that  ''all  are  to 
GO,  and  to  go  to  all,"  so  when  we  come  to  consider  how 
little  help  many  ministers  have  from  the  church  members, 
in  carrying  the  gospel  "to  every  creature,"  we  have  an- 
other explanation  of  why  so  few  come  to  the  services,  and 
perhaps  of  why  so  few  are  reached.  In  apostolic  times, 
we  are  told,  "They  that  were  scattered  abroad  went 
everywhere  preaching  the  Word,"  and  in  the  first  verse 
of  this  same  chapter,  we  are  told  that  they  were  all  scat- 


i86  The  Presbyterian  Church 

tered  except  the  apostles,  so  that  it  is  evident  that  they 
that  were  scattered  and  went  everywhere  preaching  the 
Word,  making  direct  efforts  to  save  men,  were  not  or- 
dained ministers,  but  were  simply  professing  Christians — 
private  members. 

If  we  were  to  keep  within  the  limitation  of  this  Great 
Commission,  perhaps  our  services  in  the  pulpit,  in  the 
Sunday-school,  and  elsewhere,  would  not  only  be  more 
attractive,  but  have  more  power.  Note  that  the  limita- 
tion was  that  they  should  preach  the  gospel,  and  the 
gospel  only,  for  it  is  quite  possible  for  us,  when  preaching 
and  teaching,  to  be  very  orthodox,  and  to  tell  much  of 
the  historical  facts,  of  the  geography,  geology  and  other 
truths  of  the  Bible,  and  yet  not  be  preaching  the  gospel, 
for,  as  some  one  has  well  said,  we  should,  when  preaching 
and  teaching,  be  sure  to  have  both  a  subject  and  an 
object.  Let  the  subject  be  the  gospel,  and  the  object 
the  salvation  of  souls  and  the  edification  of  believers, 
and  with  God's  blessing  upon  us,  we  can  scarcely  fail 
of  doing  good ;  but,  alas,  how  much  of  this  preaching 
and  teaching  seems  to  have  other  subjects  than  the  gos- 
pel and  other  objects  than  the  salvation  of  souls  or  edi- 
fication of  believers;  in  short,  is  pointless,  objectless,  and, 
therefore,  powerless. 

This  Great  Commission  has  a  declaration  attached  in 
the  form  of  a  most  blessed  promise,  which  is  most  en- 
couraging, and  I  am  sure  that  no  one  is  authorized,  or 
expected  to  accept  the  command  to  go  preach  the  gospel, 
without  also  accepting,  in  good  faith,  the  blessed  promise. 
What  is  this  promise?  '^Lo,  I  am  with  you  alway,  even 
unto  the  end  of  the  world."  Here  we  have  the  promise 
of  the  presence  of  Jesus  with  us,  an  almighty,  willing, 
anxious  and  able  helper. 

Notice  that  this  promise  meant  much  to  the  apostles, 


In  North  Carolina.  187 

disciples  and  early  Christians,  indeed,  even  the  apostles 
themselves  were  not  permitted  to  accept  the  Great  Com- 
mission and  go  forth  to  preach  the  gospel,  until  they  had 
realized  what  His  presence  with  them  meant.  It  had  no 
mystical,  shadowy  meaning  to  them,  and  none  such  is 
intended  now.  It  is  true  they  spoke  with  tongues  and 
performed  miracles,  but  it  is  also  true  that  they  were 
clothed  with  great  power  to  preach  and  teach  and  speak 
for  their  Lord  and  Master. 

The  statement  of  the  text  is,  "I  am  with  you  alway." 
No  one  doubts  that  the  command  to  go  and  preach  the 
gospel  is  in  force  now,  and  will  last  until  the  end  of  time ; 
can  it  be  that  the  command  is  in  force,  and  that  the 
promise  is  not?  or,  in  other  words,  that  we  are  com- 
manded to  go  and  preach,  but  have  no  promise  of  his 
help?  Surely  not.  If  the  disciples,  who  had  been  taught 
by  our  Saviour,  face  to  face,  needed  the  Spirit's  help, 
surely  we  do,  and  yet  there  are  so  many  to-day,  we  fear, 
to  whom  this  promise,  "Lo,  I  am  with  you  alway,"  means 
really  nothing.  Shall  we  not  pray  that  we  may  have  a 
realization  of  what  this  promise  means?  We  need  this 
help  to  lead  us  in  the  right  way  ourselves,  to  keep  us 
from  self-dependence  and  self-help  of  all  kinds,  to  make 
us  humble,  and  to  guide  us,  not  only  in  the  use  of  our 
words,  but  to  keep  these  words  from  being  as  a  sounding 
brass  or  a  tinkling  cymbal,  for  when  the  Word  is 
preached  or  taught,  without  the  power  of  the  Spirit,  it 
perhaps  hardens  the  human  heart  as  nothing  else  will  do. 

We  need,  too,  the  help  of  the  Holy  Spirit  to  show  us 
the  necessity  for  work,  to  enable  us  to  use  our  opportuni- 
ties, to  give  us  a  love  for  the  work,  and  above  all,  for 
power,  so  that  we  may  preach,  teach,  speak  and  live  in 
such  way  that  souls  shall  be  saved.  Observe  that  we  were 
directed  in  this  Great  Commission  to  make  disciples.  Are 


i88  The  Presbyterian  Church 

you  doing  it?  If  not,  why  not?  After  the  disciples  are 
made,  we  are  to  teach  them  to  observe  all  things  that 
Christ  has  commanded  them.  At  Pentecost,  when  the 
apostles  were  filled  with  the  Spirit,  in  one  sermon,  three 
thousand  souls  were  saved,  and  within  a  few  days  more, 
the  number  had  increased,  we  are  told,  to  five  thousand. 
Why  is  it  that  we  have  no  such  power  now?  The 
promise  stands,  and,  moreover,  our  Saviour  teaches  us, 
not  only  in  this  commission  itself,  but  in  numerous  other 
Scriptures,  to  expect  results.  He  has  declared  in  the  fif- 
teenth chapter  of  John's  Gospel,  ''Herein  is  my  Father 
glorified,  that  ye  bear  much  fruit." 

Is  it  not  a  fact  that  not  very  many  souls  are  being 
saved,  that  professing  Christians,  most  of  them,  are  cold 
and  apathetical,  with  little  love  for  souls,  and  with  little 
or  no  enthusiasm  in  the  service  of  the  Master?  If  so,  are 
we  satisfied  for  this  state  of  afifairs  to  continue? 

Multiplying  agencies  is  not  enough;  what  we  need  is 
power,  and  we  can  and  will  have  the  power  when  we 
fulfill  the  conditions;  that  is  to  say,  if  we,  ourselves,  the 
church  members  are,  (i)  filled  with  the  Spirit,  and  (2) 
filled  with  love  for  souls,  filled  with  the  knowledge  of  the 
Word,  and  will  go  to  the  people,  even  unto  the  highways 
and  hedges,  we  can  and  will  compel  them  to  come  in  and 
hear  the  Word,  and  they  will  be  saved.  We  can  go  our- 
selves, and  we  can,  by  our  means,  send  others,  and  we 
should  not  be  discouraged  by  past  failures,  but  face 
squarely  the  facts  and  realize  what  they  mean.  First, 
that  for  1,900  years  the  church  has  paid  little  attention 
to  this  Great  Commission,  to  go  into  all  the  world  and 
preach  the  gospel  to  every  creature,  and  secondly,  that 
the  difficulties  are  not  growing  less,  but  larger.  Third, 
that  every  one  who  fails  to  do  his  duty  is  a  hinderer,  and 
lastly,  that  we  need  for  ourselves  and  others,  not  to  save 


In  North  Carolina.  189 

alone  our  souls,  but  our  lives,  and  enlist  them  in  this 
great  work.  This  done,  the  church  must  surely  grow, 
for  growth  is  the  law  of  life,  and  action  is  the  law  of 
growth.  God's  law  is,  use  or  lose,  and  He  destroyed  the 
Jewish  Church  as  it  then  existed,  in  part,  because  of  its 
failure  to  perform  the  work  given  it  to  do.  Any  church 
that  neglects  or  refuses  to  go  forth,  carrying  the  gospel 
to  the  unsaved,  is  surely  inviting  the  judgment  of  the 
Lord  upon  it.  Let  us,  therefore,  awake  to  our  responsi- 
bility, to  ourselves,  that  we  may  be  right,  and  to  our  fel- 
low men,  that  they  may  be  helped,  and  especially  to  those 
who  are  out  of  Christ,  that  they  may  be  saved,  for  the 
church  at  home  is,  as  it  were,  the  engine  of  all  mission 
work  at  home  and  in  foreign  lands,  therefore,  we  must 
live  the  Christ  life  ourselves  and  have  a  religion  worth 
sending  before  we  can  successfully  carry  or  send  the  gos- 
pel to  the  unsaved. 

There  never  was  and  never  will  be  enough  preachers 
to  do  this  work  at  home  or  abroad;  in  fact,  it  was  never 
intended  that  they  should,  but  on  the  other  hand,  every 
Christian  has  been  given  a  part  in  the  work,  for  our 
Saviour  said,  ''Gave  unto  every  man  his  work,"  and  not 
only  so,  but  it  is  equally  true  that  the  opportunities  of 
the  private  members  are  frequently  not  less  than  those 
of  the  ministers,  and  as  all  have  opportunities,  it  follows 
that  all  have  a  corresponding  responsibility. 

Let  us,  then,  give  cheerfully  ourselves,  our  means,  our 
sons  and  our  daughters,  our  all,  to  the  accomplishment 
of  this  work,  and  do  this,  not  simply  as  a  duty,  but  as 
a  great  privilege,  for  in  so  doing,  the  reflex  influence 
must  tell  most  powerfully  upon  us  and  our  churches. 
Remember,  it  is  the  still  pond  and  not  the  running  river 
that  freezes  and  stagnates ;  if,  therefore,  in  our  churches, 
our  homes,  and  our  hearts,  there  is  spiritual  freezing  and 


190  The  Presbyterian  Church 

stagnation,  the  cause  must  be  evident.  We  are  not  ac- 
tively engaged  in  the  Master's  work,  not  going  to  the 
unsaved,  and  therefore,  spiritual  apathy,  almost  akin  to 
death,  has  seized  upon  us.  Let  us  at  once  remove  the 
cause,  not  only  for  the  sake  of  the  unsaved,  but  for  our 
own  sake.  It  is  no  small  sin  to  be  lukewarm,  and  to  feel 
that  we  have  need  of  nothing,  self-satisfied,  for  the  ter- 
rible denunciation  pronounced  by  our  Saviour  upon  such, 
shows  how  such  conduct  is  viewed  by  Him. 

Are  you  a  neglecter  of  work?  Remember,  a  neglecter 
of  work  is  a  delayer  of  work.  Delay  it  no  longer.  A 
million  of  years  would  not  be  sufficient  to  do  the  work  at 
the  present  rate,  and  when  we  consider,  that  instead  of 
having  ages  in  which  to  do  the  work,  the  time  is  limited ; 
limited  both  as  to  the  worker  and  the  work.  We  who 
are  to  do  the  work  have  only  a  short  time  in  which  to 
reach  the  unsaved,  for  soon,  our  sun  will  be  swinging 
toward  the  west,  and  life's  little  day  will  be  gone,  and 
with  it  our  opportunity  also ;  then,  too,  if  we  had  the 
time  ourselves,  the  lost  are  dying  every  day,  and  dying 
without  Christ,  not  only  in  heathen  lands,  but  in  your 
congregation,  sometimes  in  your  own  family.  What  did 
you  do  to  rescue  them? 

Let  us  preach,  teach  and  live  Christ,  for  there  has 
been  entirely  too  much  of  everything  else.  Our  multipli- 
cation of  agencies,  societies,  committees,  asylums,  and 
what  not,  does  not  reach  and  does  not  accomplish  what 
grace  and  consecration,  by  the  help  of  the  Spirit,  alone 
can  do.  Let  Christ  be  the  starting,  the  rallying  and  the 
radiating  point  for  every  Christian ;  let  Him  be  our 
Wisdom  and  our  Power.  Let  us  bear  his  image,  be  so 
filled  with  His  thoughts  that  we  shall  speak  powerfully 
of  Him  and  for  Him.  Expression  is  but  the  result  of 
impression.     If  we,  therefore,  have  not  been  impressed 


In  North  Carolina.  191 

with  the  necessity  for  doing  mission  work^  and  of  our 
obhgation  to  go  and  carry  the  gospel  to  the  unsaved, 
how  can  we  hope  to  express,  with  any  power,  this  nec- 
^sity  upon  others,  or  reach  the  unsaved  when  speaking 
to  them? 

Let  us  pray,  too,  for  workers,  and  for  the  work,  and 
work  ourselves,  praying  as  if  all  depended  on  God,  and 
working  as  if  all  depended  on  us.  We  have  riches  and 
education  and  social  standing.  Do  these  things  separate 
us  from  the  people?  If  so,  they  are  a  peril  and  not  a 
blessing,  but,  guided  by  the  Spirit,  these  things  should  be 
a  power  for  good  in  our  hands.  If  we  can  but  realize 
the  sacred  trust  committed  to  us,  and  appreciate  the  great 
privilege  of  carrying  this  gospel  to  the  unsaved,  we  shall 
have,  as  a  reflex  influence,  more  assurance  that  we  are 
God's  children,  more  joy  in  His  service,  as  well  as  more 
success  in  what  we  undertake  for  Him ;  it  will  build  up 
our  churches  and  give  them  new  life  and  new  power. 
Remember,  that  a  tallow  dip  that  gives  light  is  better 
than  a  golden  chandelier  without  flame.  Be  sure  that 
you  live  a  helpful  life  and  begin  it  now ;  while  you  wait, 
souls  perish.  What  a  splendid  opportunity  our  elders, 
deacons  and  Sunday-school  teachers,  and  in  fact,  every 
private  member  has,  for  they  are  of  the  people  and  among 
the  people,  in  just  the  place  and  with  just  the  knowledge 
of  their  needs  to  enable  them  to  do  the  greatest  good. 
Decide  now  that  you  will  undertake  to  win  a  soul  for 
Jesus  every  time  you  have  the  opportunity. 

"Have  you  found  the  heavenly  light?    Pass  it  on; 
Souls  are  groping  in  the  night,  daylight  gone; 
Hold  thy  lighted  lamp  on  high, 
Be  a  star  in  some  one's  sky; 

He  may  live,  who  else  would  die;    pass  it  on." 


ig2  The  Presbyterian  Church 

Are  you   ready  to  say — will  you — do   you   now   say, 
"What  shall  I  do,  Lord?"     Say  it  now. 

"Hark,  the  voice  of  Jesus  crying, 

Who  will  go  and  work  to-day? 
Fields  are  white  and  harvest  waiting. 

Who  will  bear  the  sheaves  away? 
Loud  and  strong  the  Master  calleth. 

Rich  reward  he  offers  thee: 
Who   will   answer,    gladly   saying, 

Here  am  I;     send  me,  send  me? 

"If  you  cannot  speak  like  angels, 

If  you  cannot  preach  like  Paul, 
You  can  tell  the  love  of  Jesus; 

You  can  say,  He  died  for  all. 
If  you  cannot  rouse  the  wicked 

With  the  judgment's  dread  alarms. 
You  can  lead  the  little  children 

To  the  Saviour's  waiting  arms." 


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